Sadio Mane Bags Brace As Ronaldo less Al Nassr Stage Comeback to Beat Al Fayha in Saudi League

• Sadio Mane spurred Al-Nassr to a come-from-behind win against Al Fayha
• The former Liverpool star scored twice in his side's 3-1 triumph on Friday
• He made sure the Knights of Najd did not miss star man, Cristiano Ronaldo

Sadio Mane redeemed himself by notching two goals to help Al-Nassr secure a come-from-behind victory against Al Fayha after missing a penalty in the first half.

A double from the Senegal international and a bullet header from Abdulelah Al Amri rendered Fashion Saka's early strike a consolation, as the Knights of Najd made sure Cristiano Ronaldo's absence was not felt.

Having crashed out of the Saudi Super Cup against Al-Hilal as well as losing Ronaldo to a suspension due to a red card for appearing to elbow his marker, the home side were on the back foot from the onset.

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Mane inspires Al Nassr to comeback win against Al Fayha

Anthony Nwakaeme and Sakala teamed up nicely, with the latter latching onto a ball from the veteran Nigerian forward to break the game's deadlock in the sixth minute for Al Fayha.

Sakala's strike gave the home side a rude awakening. Two minutes after the opener, Otavio came within a whisker of finding the equaliser, but Vladimir Stojkovic pulled off a brilliant save to shut the home side out.

It was Sadio Mane's turn to test the Al Fayha defence, but they did not find any joy. His frustrations grew from bad to worse when he blasted a penalty in the 42nd minute well over the crossbar, underscoring Al-Nassr's wastefulness in front of goal.

After recess, the Riyadh-based giants upped the ante. Mane went close in the 55th minute, but it was Nwakaeme who nearly doubled the visitors' lead when his rocket of an effort clipped off the right post.

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It proved to be a costly miss when Al Amri connected with an Alex Telles corner to draw the home side level after huffing and puffing for the most part of the game.

Soon after, Mane made amends for his earlier misses when he volleyed home from close range after former FC Porto playmaker Otavio set him up to complete the comeback, as noted by Daily Sports.

He sealed the win with a brilliant solo finish. With his nimble-footed skillset, he danced his way into the Al Fayha defence before rifling a powerful shot in between Stojkovic's legs in the 82nd minute.

Things got worse for the away side as goal-scorer Sakala received his marching orders for retaliating with a shove.

Nonetheless, the 2023 Arab Cup winners held on to secure all three points despite missing their talisman, Cristiano Ronaldo, and head coach, Luis Castro, who was ill.

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Ronaldo reacts to Al-Nassr's win against Al Fayha

Sports Brief also reported that Cristiano Ronaldo has reacted to Al-Nassr's thrilling comeback win against Al Fayha in the Saudi Pro League (SPL) on Friday, April 19.

Ronaldo praised his teammates on Instagram for securing their 22nd victory of the season in a hard-fought match.