Fans Salute Ronaldo for Not Taking ‘Robbed’ Penalties After Telling Referee To Cancel Spot Kick

• Cristiano Ronaldo won the hearts of football fans with his recent act of sportsmanship
• Al-Nassr were awarded a penalty in their AFC Champions League tie versus Persepolis
• However, the 38-year-old quickly prompted the match official to rescind his decision

Football fans flooded social media to commend Cristiano Ronaldo's exemplary sportsmanship during Al-Nassr's clash against Persepolis in the AFC Champions League.

Ronaldo, who had made the headlines over the weekend for scoring two stupendous goals, captured attention once more, this time for his fair play.

In the initial moments of the penultimate group-stage match, the former Real Madrid goal-scoring machine seemed to have been fouled inside the box, leading the referee to award a penalty in favour of Al-Nassr.

Ronaldo demonstrates honesty in penalty incident

However, in a remarkable display of honesty, Ronaldo hurried towards the match official, signalling for them to reconsider the decision, as cited by the BBC.

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The swift intervention by the 38-year-old prompted the referee to review the incident using the VAR, resulting in the cancellation of the penalty.

This incident rapidly spread across social media platforms, sparking conversations among fans.

Even without the penalty, Al-Nassr secured their spot in the last 16 of the 2023/24 AFC Champions League as Group E winners on Monday, despite playing most of the 0-0 draw against Persepolis in Riyadh with 10 men, per Zawya.com.

Fans salute Ronaldo's honesty

Ronaldo's gesture of fairness earned widespread praise from fans, many taking the opportunity to contrast his sportsmanship with that of his rival, Lionel Messi.

@ReyesDeUniverso praised the Portuguese star but was quick to aim a seeming swipe at the Argentine:

"He doesn't take robbed penalties like a certain someone."

@Chava_snr slammed Messi while lauding Ronaldo:

"If it were Messi in Qatar, he would never do this. This is why Ronaldo is the greatest of all time."

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@killeures simply stated:

"Ronaldo is more humble than Messi."

@ValvRmfc used the opportunity to deride the World Cup winner:

"You will never see Messi doing this, by the way; he just likes to steal penalties just like in the World Cup."

@7amd998 lauded Ronaldo's sportsmanship:

"Ronaldo tells the match referee that the penalty kick he received was incorrect. Ronaldo is a symbol of morality and fair play."

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Al-Nassr seal AFC Champions League knockout berth

Earlier, Sports Brief reported on Al-Nassr advancing to the AFC CL knockouts despite a goalless stalemate against Persepolis on Monday, November 27.

The Knights of Najd joined South Korea's Pohang Steelers and three others in advancing early to the subsequent round of Asia's premier club competition.