Football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo wished his fans Ramadan Kareem on Tuesday.

The UAE confirmed the official start date of Ramadan will begin on February 18.

Recently, Ronaldo marked his first match since turning 41 in the best possible way, scoring in Al Nassr’s 2-0 win over Al Fateh on Saturday at the Prince Abdullah Bin Jalawi Stadium.

The victory keeps Al Nassr firmly in the Saudi Pro League title race. They are now just one point behind leaders Al Hilal after game week 21.

Making his return to the starting eleven after missing three matches amid a dispute with club management, Ronaldo wasted little time reminding everyone of his value.

In the 18th minute, Sadio Mane delivered a sharp cross into the box and Ronaldo met it first time, guiding the ball into the bottom right corner. It was a calm and clinical finish, the kind that has defined his career for more than two decades.

Al Nassr controlled most of the game after taking the lead. They sealed the win in the 78th minute when Ayman Yahya struck a fine second goal to secure all three points for the visitors.

Al Nassr will aim to extend their winning streak when they face Al Hazem on February 21. With Ronaldo back among the goals and fully focused on football again, the Riyadh giants remain the biggest challenge to Al Hilal in the race for the Saudi Pro League crown.

GN

Argentine star Lionel Messi missed Inter Miami’s training session on Wednesday due to strain in his left hamstring, prompting the American soccer league champions to postpone their friendly match in Puerto Rico.

The Argentine star and captain of Inter Miami was injured during the 2-2 draw with Barcelona Guayaquil in Ecuador last Saturday.

Messi underwent further tests to determine the extent of the injury.

“Unfortunately, I felt some muscle tightness in the last match,” Messi said in a team statement.

The return date of the Qatar 2022 World Cup champion remains uncertain, as the club stated that his gradual return to training “will depend on the improvement of his health and functional condition in the coming days.”

The defending champions will kick off their 2026 league campaign against Los Angeles FC on February 21.

Inter Miami was scheduled to play against Ecuador’s Independiente del Valle on Friday in Puerto Rico, but the team announced the postponement of the match to February 26, three days before its game against rival Orlando in the American league.

Messi, winner of eight Ballon d’Or awards for the world’s best player, continued, addressing the Puerto Rican fans: “We were really looking forward to seeing you. So we worked with the club to find an alternative date so we could travel and play in Puerto Rico.”

He concluded by saying, “We know how excited and eager you are to watch the Inter Miami match, and we would be delighted if that happens soon

Asharq -Al Awsat

This victory raised Liverpool’s tally to 42 points in sixth place, while Sunderland’s tally remained at 36 points in eleventh place.

Liverpool’s next match is against Brighton on Saturday, while Sunderland play Oxford United on Sunday in the fourth round of the FA Cup.

Similar to the first-round encounter between the two teams which ended in a 1-1 draw, the match was largely even in terms of possession, chance creation and attacking attempts.

Liverpool had a golden opportunity to score in the 29th minute after Mohamed Salah sent in a cross that Sunderland’s defense failed to deal with, allowing the ball to reach German Florian Wirtz, but he hesitated in shooting it directly in front of the goal, 

In the second half, the performance continued at the same pace, with Liverpool making attempts met by sporadic attacks from Sunderland. However, the team of Dutch coach Arne Slott lacked the decisive attacking rhythm capable of threatening the home team’s goal more effectively.

In the 61st minute, Liverpool were awarded a corner kick, which Salah delivered perfectly onto the head of Van Dijk, who headed it into the net, giving his team the lead.

Liverpool were forced to substitute their Japanese player Wataru Endo in the 69th minute after he suffered a serious injury, before Slott brought on Englishman Curtis Jones in place of Dutchman Cody Gakpo in the 75th minute.

Despite this important victory, Liverpool are still outside the European qualification spots for next season, specifically the Champions League, as they need to achieve more victories to move up the standings and catch up with one of the qualifying spots.

The Reds are now three points behind their rivals Manchester United, who are in fourth place and could only manage a 1-1 

Asharq -Al Awsat