Ronaldo gunning for 3rd golden boot - and yet more RSL history | OneFootball

Cristiano Ronaldo is no stranger to making history, and he’ll be charging after even more in this season's Roshn Saudi League.

The Portuguese superstar has been a goal-scoring machine since arriving at Al Nassr in late December 2022, striking at a rate of almost a goal a game. In 77 RSL matches, he has netted 74 times.

It's a staggering return for someone who turned 40 earlier this year; yet also not a surprise when you comprehend the skyscraper standards the Real Madrid great sets for himself and those around him.

With no room for even the slightest slackness, Ronaldo demands excellence, especially from himself. It is something he has delivered in spades in the RSL, clinching the golden boot in each of the past two seasons. In the 2023-24 season alone, the Al Nassr captain's 35 goals set a new single-season record.

About to set off on his third full campaign at Al Nassr, Ronaldo is looking to etch his name to the collection of RSL legends who have won three golden-boot awards. It’s rarified air, reserved for only the best the competition has had to offer.

In the Saudi Pro League era, only Nasser Al Shamrani, Omar Al Somah and Abderrazak Hamdallah have managed to claim a trio of seasonal top-scorer prizes. Now, Ronaldo is aiming to join them.

Indeed, it would place him in elite company. Al Shamrani, one of Saudi Arabia’s all-time great strikers, sits alone as the only man to have collected the award four times, those secured in 2008-09, 2010-11, 2011-12 and 2013-14.

Al Shabab captain Abderrazak Hamdallah scores winner v Al Riyadh

The frontman captured the first three with Al Shabab, before crossing over to Al Hilal, where he claimed his final golden boot.

Hamdallah, who lifted the award in 2018-19, 2019-20 and 2022-23 - the first two with Al Nassr, the latter at Al Ittihad - is chasing his own slice of history this season. At present, he sits second in the league’s all-time scoring charts, trailing Al Somah, by five goals.

Speaking of the Syrian superstar, whose unprecedented mark comes in at 155 RSL goals, he is the only man to have won the golden boot in three consecutive seasons.

The trio of trinkets were sealed between 2014 and 2017 during that golden period at Al Ahli. It is a feat Ronaldo will be intent on emulating.

Fresh from signing a new contract that will keep him at Al Nassr until 2027, motivation won’t be an issue for club captain. On the contrary, he will be as laser-focused as ever to deliver silverware for Al Nassr this season – and, to do so, he knows he needs to deliver himself.

It’ll be a new-look Al Nassr Ronaldo finds around him this season, with the likes of Joao Felix, Inigo Martinez and Kingsley Coman signing in the off-season to strengthen and deepen the Al Nassr squad.

Managed now, too, by RSL great Jorge Jesus, the early signs from pre-season, for both Ronaldo and club, have been largely positive.

Before jetting to Hong Kong for last week’s Saudi Super Cup, Al Nassr headed to Europe to prepare for the 2025-26 campaign, taking in Austria, Portugal and Spain.

In three games - Toulouse, Rio Ave and UD Almeria - Ronaldo bagged six goals, including a hat-trick against Rio Ave and a brace against UD Almeria.

“The hunger never fades,” the five-time Ballon d'Or winner shared on social media after the win against Toulouse in the picturesque Austrian Alps. “Still work to do and we’re just getting started.”

While the Saudi Super Cup ended in penalty heartbreak, Ronaldo has began competitive play as he left off in pre-season, opening the scoring from the spot in the final against Al Ahli. He later converted Al Nassr’s opening spot-kick in the shootout after the clash had ended 2-2.

Once Al Ahli had prevailed on penalties, Ronaldo’s frustration at letting slip another trophy was immediately evident, a demonstration of the burning desire that he simply must bring success to Al Nassr. It is a drive that is sure to fuel him throughout this coming season.

There are, however, shoots of optimism. His rapport with Felix, his international teammate, shows all the signs of transforming into a deadly combination this term. Certainly, with Felix’s vision and fleet of foot feeding Ronaldo, anything feels possible.

For Ronaldo, in the back of his mind must surely be his own personal quest for 1,000 career goals. As it stands, the Portugal superstar sits on 939: 61 goals shy of the milestone. That’s tantalisingly close for a player with the goalscoring pedigree that we have really never been seen before.

Having already helped change the face of the RSL since his arrival in Riyadh almost three years ago, Ronaldo will now set about yet more creating history once more - a third successive golden boot.

With it, he will only deepen a legacy in the Kingdom that can never be contested.