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Cristiano Ronaldo’s time with Al Nassr could be drawing to a close amid another frustrating Saudi Pro League campaign.

Ronaldo, who joined the club at the end of 2022 following his Manchester United exile, has been a relentless goal-getter in the Middle East, scoring 91 times in 103 Al Nassr appearances but his stint is yet to deliver on the silverware front.

While Al Nassr are stocked with familiar faces, including Jhon Duran and Sadio Mane, they’ve struggled to muster a title challenge despite Ronaldo’s goals. A 3-2 defeat to league leaders Al Ittihad on Wednesday (a game in which they led 2-0) all but ended their pursuit of Saudi glory and MARCA claims that Ronaldo’s post-match reaction to the defeat didn’t go down too well with club officials.

The all-time great reportedly left Al Nassr’s stadium without changing his kit.

The club’s recent malaise also saw them exit the Asian Champions League at the hands of Japanese outfit Kawasaki Frontale in the last four, and their current fourth-place standing in the Saudi Pro League means they’re currently not assured of a spot in the AFC competition next season.

As a result, Ronaldo is believed to be reconsidering his future in Riyadh, having previously been keen to extend his stay by another two years. He’s desperate to add to his trophy haul before calling it a career, but only has one piece of silverware – the 2023 Arab Champions Cup – to show for his time in Saudi Arabia.

If the 40-year-old, who aims to play at the 2026 World Cup with Portugal, decides to move on, speculation will be rife regarding his next club. A return to Sporting CP may well be on the table, with his former club potentially viewing Ronaldo as a stop-gap option to replace Viktor Gyokeres, who looks likely to depart the Lisbon side this summer.

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Barcelona moved one game away from lifting the 2024/25 La Liga title with a frankly ridiculous 4-3 victory over rivals Real Madrid.

“The only thing that matters is winning,” Hansi Flick declared ahead of a league-defining Clasico. The route to Barcelona’s recent victories hasn’t always been so straightforward and Sunday was no different. Flick’s side trailed for the seventh time in the past eight games as Kylian Mbappe rattled in a rapid-fire record-breaking brace.

Madrid’s superiority was short-lived. Eric Garcia ghosted into the penalty box to head Barcelona back into the contest four minutes after Mbappe’s second, ramping up a Montjuic crowd which had only just begun to be treated to the full extent of the game’s utter mayhem.

Two goals in as many minutes from Lamine Yamal and Raphinha had Barcelona 3-2 up barely past the half-hour mark. Carlo Ancelotti scarcely had time to raise an eyebrow at Yamal’s fizzer into the bottom corner before his Brazilian colleague made the most of a high turnover.

It was that ferocity of Barcelona’s press – miraculously undiluted despite the draining two-hour defeat to Inter in Tuesday’s Champions League semi-final – which completely derailed Real Madrid. Lucas Vazquez couldn’t handle the intensity by the end of a blistering opening 45 minutes, limply giving up possession to Raphinha who combined with Ferran Torres to make it 4-2 at the interval.

Barcelona assumed control of a second half which wasn’t quite as deranged as the first period, yet it was Real Madrid who struck back through Mbappe. The Frenchman completed his hat-trick to add some tension to the final 20 minutes.

Madrid, the side more synonymous with late goals than any other, came close to penning another page in their legendary history of dramatic comebacks, only to be undone by the offside flag.

Fermin Lopez’s late disallowed goal took away little from a win which moved Barcelona seven points clear at La Liga’s summit with just three games remaining.

*Ratings provided by FotMob*

Subs not used: Inaki Pena (GK), Marc-Andre ter Stegen (GK), Ronald Araujo, Marc Casado, Ansu Fati, Pau Victor, Robert Lewandowski.

*Ratings provided by FotMob*

Subs not used: Andriy Lunin (GK), Sergio Mestre (GK), Jacobo Ramon, Jesus Vallejo, Youssef, Enriquez, Rodrygo.

Player of the match – Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid)

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Struggling West Ham United claimed a shock 2-0 win over Manchester United at Old Trafford, condemning Ruben Amorim’s side to 13th place at best this season.

The Red Devils sit 16th in the standings following the final whistle, just above their opponents in the upcoming Europa League final, Tottenham Hotspur, having created plenty of chances that they weren’t able to take and losing to goals scored by Tomas Soucek and Jarrod Bowen.

How the game unfolded

As the early summer sun beat down on the Old Trafford pitch, the hosts looked the more dangerous in the opening exchanges. Bruno Fernandes had a couple of sighters fly over the bar, while Amad Diallo forced a not entirely convincing parry from Alphonse Areola after cutting inside from the right.

West Ham seemed fairly well organised through the middle without the ball, but lacked open play creativity with it. It made sense then, that a decent chance for them came from James Ward-Prowse’s free-kick onto the head of Maximilian Kilman, missing the target.

But as United’s early intensity waned, it opened the door for West Ham to take the lead. The move developed down the Hammers’ left, with Mohammed Kudus driving into a dangerous position and firing a low ball across the face of goal that Soucek was in the right place at the right time to meet.

After West Ham had gone ahead, Ramsus Hojlund missed the target with a couple of half chances, one the result of Mason Mount’s long pass over the top that he was just unable to direct sufficiently goalward as Areola came out to meet him.

West Ham came charging out after half-time and almost landed a quick second, as Kudus escaped the attentions of Fernandes to get into the box. The attempted finish from Ward-Prowse, however, was weak and was easily collected by the grateful Altay Bayindir, standing in for usual number one goalkeeper Andre Onana.

Football can sometimes be cruel. So when United thought they had a shout for a penalty that was waved away as Amad collided with Soucek and Vladimir Coufal, and Mount saw a decent shot saved by Areola, West Ham quickly did get their second of the game.

It was scrappy and avoidable from a United perspective, but the Hammers cared little. Manuel Ugarte, withdrawn almost immediately afterwards, cheaply lost possession in his own half, giving Kudus the freedom to drive towards goal. The move actually looked to have broken down when his shot was blocked, by which time defensive numbers outweighed the attackers. But Aaron Wan-Bissaka was on hand to keep the ball alive and find Bowen at the far post for a tap-in.

United responded well, but it came too little too late and they weren’t actually able to dent the West Ham lead. Substitute Alejandro Garnacho shot into the side netting, Hojlund headed just wide of the post, before the Dane then saw a shot saved by Areola’s feet.

The French goalkeeper soon pulled off a stop from Harry Maguire, another replacement, at close-range, before somehow foiling Hojlund in the centre of the goal after a Maguire knockdown. That late pressure in search of at least something continued into the final stages, with teenager Harry Amass and Victor Lindelof each denied during a goalmouth scramble, but West Ham held firm.

Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth, Newcastle United, Brighton & Hove Albion, Crystal Palace and Wolverhampton Wanderers have all won at Old Trafford in the Premier League this season. It is no longer the fortress it used to be.

So there was always likely to be an opportunity for West Ham, who have been one of the most frequent visitors to Old Trafford in the Premier League era but have an awful record at the stadium, to join the club and reap the rewards.

Before kick-off, West Ham had not won an away league game against United since May 2007, 18 years ago, when Sir Alex Ferguson’s side had already been crowned champions and a goal from Carlos Tevez ensured the Hammers avoided relegation on the final day of the season.

While the Europa League has been a largely enjoyable watch this season, Manchester United have now equalled their longest ever win-less run in the Premier League: seven games.

They haven’t won in the league since the middle of March, when a hopeless Leicester City were the opposition. Further fixtures against Nottingham Forest, Manchester City, Newcastle United, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Bournemouth, Brentford and now West Ham have come since then.

The last time United went this long without a Premier League win was during the early months of the competition’s inaugural campaign in 1992/93. The difference then was that most of those games finished as draws and the run came to an immediate end when Eric Cantona arrived in November 1992, at which point the team went on an outstanding run to claim the title by May.

Ruben Amorim is clearly managing his squad so that the most important players are not running on fumes, or injured, by the time the crucial season-defining Europa League final in Bilbao comes.

So while there weren’t wholesale changes here – Bruno Fernandes, Manuel Ugarte, Leny Yoro and Rasmus Hojlund all started – there was some obvious Europa League-led thinking behind the omission of Andre Onana from the matchday squad, and Harry Maguire, Casemiro, Patrick Dorgu and Alejandro Garnacho dropping to the bench.

Kobbie Mainoo, Amad Diallo and Mason Mount have all missed big chunks of the season through injury and are in need of consistent minutes now, to build up their fitness. At least one – most probably Amad – is likely to start in Bilbao.

The worry is that Yoro’s withdrawal early in the second half was the result of an injury.

It’s small consolation, but in this most dreadful of seasons, Manchester United are still not quite as bad as Tottenham Hotspur, the team against which they will contest the Europa League final for a place in next season’s Champions League and the associated riches.

Spurs losing against Crystal Palace is what stopped United, having been leapfrogged by West Ham as a result of this game, from finishing the weekend in 17th place.

Amorim and his players will have to hope that league position and not this season’s head to head record, which has seen Spurs win all three meetings so far, will count for more in Bilbao.

This was Amad Diallo’s first Premier League start since February. When fit, he’s been one of the squad’s chief sources of goals and creativity during the Amorim era. That was again evident in this one as United made an initially bright start in the early stages of the game. It also the Ivorian who was taking the game to West Ham just before the killer second goal, while he remained involved in helping make further chances until being withdrawn in the final ten minutes.

But two things are clear. He cannot do it all by himself, and he’s not yet reached match sharpness after being cautiously reintroduced over the last few weeks.

Check out the player ratings from Man Utd 0-2 West Ham here.

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Manchester United have been handed a welcome injury boost ahead of the Europa League final, with striker Joshua Zirkzee insisting he could return in time to feature.

Zirkzee went down with a hamstring injury in last month’s defeat to Newcastle United and head coach Ruben Amorim wasted little time in stating the Dutch forward’s season was over because of the issue.

He has missed the last six games across all competitions, including both legs of the Europa League semi-final against Athletic Club, from which United emerged victorious to book their place in the final against Tottenham Hotspur on May 21.

In a phone call with former Bayern Munich teammate Alphonso Davies, who streamed the interaction online, Zirkzee confessed he has set his sights on returning in time for the final.

“I’m trying to be back for the final,” the striker said. “We’ll see what’s possible but it’s going to be difficult.”

A return for Zirkzee would come as an enormous boost to United as they seek to save their season by lifting the trophy and sealing a spot in next season’s Champions League.

Rasmus Hojlund is United’s only senior striker as it stands. 17-year-old Chido Obi has seen plenty of opportunities in Zirkzee’s absence as Amorim seeks to protect his first-team players for their European journey.

Should Zirkzee make it back for the Europa League final, he would also stand a chance of featuring in United’s final game of the campaign. Aston Villa visit Old Trafford on the final day of the Premier League season four days after the final,

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Liverpool still see Bayer Leverkusen right-back Jeremie Frimpong as a “leading candidate” to replace Trent Alexander-Arnold this summer, a report has claimed.

The Reds were rocked earlier this month by confirmation of Alexander-Arnold’s decision to walk away from the club on a free transfer when his contract expires, with Real Madrid expected to confirm his arrival in the coming weeks.

Losing Alexander-Arnold will leave a significant hole in the Liverpool back line. Manager Arne Slot appears to have put his faith in fellow academy graduate Conor Bradley, but the Anfield outfit could still dip into the transfer market for further reinforcements.

Frimpong has long been touted as a top target for Liverpool and The Times insist the interest in the Dutchman remains heading into the summer transfer window.

The Dutchman’s contract includes a release clause which sits around the £30m mark – a fee which has attracted interest from a number of sides across Europe.

While £30m is an affordable figure for Liverpool, the Reds are thought to have other priorities in the summer window. Signing a new striker for Slot is the primary goal and is likely to take up a significant portion of Liverpool’s budget.

Another centre-back is also thought to be wanted, and it is thought Liverpool will pursue those deals before deciding whether to try and bring in a new right-back.

Alongside Bradley, Liverpool do have versatile defenders Joe Gomez and Jarell Quansah to call on for cover, but both natural centre-backs have been linked with moves elsewhere. The departure of at least one of the pair could force the recruitment team into action.

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