No Cristiano Ronaldo, no problem: Al Nassr beats FC Goa 2-1 in AFC Champions League Two

An inspired performance from Manolo Marquez’s FC Goa was not enough to grab the first point in the AFC Champions League Two (ACL 2) as they succumbed to a 1-2 defeat to Al Nassr at the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Wednesday.

Angelo Damaceno and Haroune Camara found the net for Nassr in the third straight win, while Brison Fernandes scored the only goal for Goa, who are yet to gain a point in the tournament.

Nassr expectedly started on the front foot and dominated possession. In the sixth minute, Camara broke on the counter and made his way to the side of the penalty area. Looking to get a shot away, Goa’s captain Sandesh Jhingan made a brilliant challenge to snatch the ball away, drawing a rousing cheer from the home crowd.

The breakthrough came four minutes later when Nassr’s pressure brought Goa’s players into their own half. Abdulrahman Ghareeb found Angelo with a deft pass. The Brazilian dragged the ball away from his marker, sent a curler from the edge of Goa’s penalty area and rattled it into the bottom left corner.

Nassr’s second – in the 27th minute – came down purely to Goa’s lax defence: Angelo’s slide-rule pass found Yahya in the penalty area, who directed the ball to Camara with a measured lob.

The latter had good control of the ball despite being surrounded by at least four opponents and then fired home on the turn, leaving Goa’s goalkeeper, Hrithik Tiwari, helpless.

The Gaurs cannot rely on lack of support. Every time a Goa player touched the ball in Nassr’s half, the crowd roared, driving the team forward.

When local boy Brison replaced the injured Javier Siverio in the 24th minute, he seemed to be under some pressure to perform. And he did, bringing the roof down in the 41st minute.

Dezan Drazic powered his way into the final third as Brison made a supporting run down the left. The Serb rolled the ball to an overlapping Brison, who cut in to beat Abdulelah Al Amri and curled the ball into the far corner.

At the other end, Ali Al Hassan had a chance to extend Nassr’s lead just before half-time with his headed shot from outside the penalty area, but an alert Hrithik pushed the ball away.

After the restart, the action off the pitch provided more excitement than that on the pitch as Sadio Mane, Joao Felix and Kingsley Coman started to warm up.

Mane – seemingly the crowd favorite – acknowledged the cheering fans and raised his hand before coming on alongside Felix in the 66th minute.

A minute later, Goa almost equalized when Boris Singh Thangjam found himself in a one-on-one situation with Nassr’s goalkeeper, Bento. The goal, even if it had happened, would not have been countered because the assistant referee’s offside flag was already raised.

Jorge Jesus’ men tried to extend their lead as Mane and Felix supported Nassr’s forward line, but Goa’s defense, manned by Jhingan, held firm and kept the score at a one-goal loss.

However, the Gaurs had a chaotic end to the match after David Timor received a straight red card in extra time for kicking the ball towards the assistant referee.

The two sides – Goa and Nassr – will meet again on November 5, this time at Nassr’s home, the King Saud University Stadium in Riyadh.

Published on October 22, 2025