Cristiano Ronaldo goal in vain as Al Hilal thrash Al Nassr in Saudi Super Cup final

Mitrovic double and goals from Milinkovic-Savic and Malcom lead Hilal fightback in 4-1 victory

Aleksandar Mitrovic lifts the Saudi Super Cup trophy after Al Hilal's victory over Al Nassr. Getty Images

Cristiano Ronaldo opened the scoring in Saturday's Saudi Super Cup final but was powerless to resist the fightback from Al Hilal as Al Nassr fell to a 4-1 defeat at Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Stadium.

Ronaldo scored the opener shortly before half time, but Saudi Pro League and King's Cup champions Hilal roared back after the break with goals from Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Malcom either side of an Aleksandar Mitrovic double.

Hilal and Nassr were by far the best teams in the SPL last season – albeit with Hilal well clear by winning the title by 14 points – so it was only fitting that the two Riyadh giants contested the season curtain-raiser final.

A competitive first half saw both sides create chances. Ronaldo had a penalty appeal waved off by the referee in the 11th minute when he competed for the ball with Hilal defender Hassan Al Tambakti. At the other end, Mitrovic saw his glancing header rebound off the post in the 34th minute.

Ronaldo then opened the scoring two minutes before the interval following excellent build-up from Saudi winger Salem Al Dawsari, who drew three Hilal players and squared the ball across the area for the Portuguese forward to slot a first-time finish into the far corner.

Hilal came flying out of the traps in the second half, pinning Nassr back and getting plenty of crosses into the area. The pressure soon told as Milinkovic-Savic scored a wonderful equaliser in the 55th minute. The charging Serbian midfielder won the ball midway in the Nassr half and after playing a quick one-two with Mitrovic, carved through the defence before unleashing a shot into the roof of the net.

The floodgates then opened for Hilal, who scored their four goals in the span of 17 minutes. Mitrovic gave his side the lead by nodding in a Ruben Neves cross in the 63rd minute. Six minutes later, the Serbian striker made it 3-1 with his second, slamming Malcom's low cross into the top corner from close range.

Brazilian winger Malcom then sealed the rout in the 72nd minute following a howler from Nassr goalkeeper Bento. After being played a pass under pressure, Bento opted to take a touch instead of hitting a clearance, but his first touch was too heavy, allowing Malcom to pounce, steal the ball, and shoot into an empty net.

“We showed how good we are in the second half,” former Fulham and Newcastle United striker Mitrovic said. “We had some problems in the first half and then changed in the second. We stayed calm and it feels good to get a trophy at the start of the season.”

Hilal, who are still waiting for record signing Neymar to return from a knee ligament injury that has kept the Brazilian out since last October, kick off their league title defence against Al Okhdood next Saturday. Nassr take on Al Raed two days earlier.