Ronaldo Scores After Security Delay in Al Nassr Win, Waves Saudi Scarf

Al Nassr's Asian Champions League match in Riyadh was postponed by one hour due to a security alert amid Houthi attacks.

Cristiano Ronaldo won praise at home in Al Nasr's AFC Champions League win when the captain scored his side's second goal before waving the Saudi scarf as a security threat caused a lengthy delay in Riyadh.

Saudi Arabia's Premier League champion defeated Uzbekistan's Naftchi 3-1 in the AFC Champions League at Al-Awal Park on Monday after the game was delayed in the capital due to the threat of Yemen's Houthi missile attacks.

The delay began after Saudi Arabia's civil defense issued a safety alert 15 minutes before the scheduled time in Riyadh, which has been targeted by Houthi missiles in recent days.

The crowd remained in their seats as the teams waited in their locker rooms.

The Saudi-led coalition announced that it intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles fired by Houthi rebels towards Riyadh. At least three explosions were heard in this city on Monday night.

Saudi Arabia's civil defense, which had warned residents through alerts sent to their phones, later said the threat had passed.

The Saudi-led coalition in the war in Yemen said its forces had intercepted a ballistic missile fired by the Houthis at Riyadh, as the city was reeling from attacks in recent days that have killed at least 14 people.

Residents of Riyadh reported several powerful explosions on Monday night, moments after text messages were sent to their phones alerting them to an aerial threat.

The Houthis, who control most of Yemen's densely populated areas, including Sanaa, the capital, have said that their target in Riyadh was the King Khalid International Airport.

The renewed attacks came as King Khalid Airport in Riyadh remains closed after a Houthi attack on Saturday that left at least 13 dead and more than 300 injured. Another attack on Sunday killed one person and wounded 11 others.

Ange Postecoglou's men brushed aside the break and took the lead in the 33rd minute with Angelo's deflected shot before Ronaldo doubled the lead nine minutes later.

The 41-year-old scored after Sadio Mane sent in a looping cross from the left which Ayman Yahya chested into the path of Ronaldo and the Portuguese forward curled the ball into the bottom corner.

Alishir Udilov scored a goal for Naftchi in six minutes of the second half, but Akromjon Alibayev's red card for a foul on Mohammad Simakan in the 65th minute and Anwarjon Gofurov's own goal in the next 13 minutes sealed the victory for Nasr.

After this win, Ronaldo and his friends cheered for the scattered spectators behind the Al-Nasr gate.

As he walked around the goal, a fan handed Ronaldo a green Saudi scarf, which Ronaldo waved with one hand before draping it around his neck.

Meanwhile, defending champions Al Ahly scored twice in the second half to earn their first win of the new campaign as Marino Pusic's side beat Al Wasl of the United Arab Emirates 3-1.

Roger Ibanez led Al-Ahly with a header in the 20th minute, but Pedro Malheiro equalized in the third minute of stoppage time.

The goals of Trincao and Firas Al-Barikan in the 58th and 91st minutes, respectively, brought Al-Ahly to 4 points from their first two games.

"We created in the first half, but in the second half we scored and I think that was the difference," Trincao said. "We were a little better physically and that was the key to changing the game."

Hossein Rahimi scored two goals for Al-Ain to defeat Air Force Club in Basra with a score of 4-1, and Hossein Guderzi's goal in the 60th minute helped Esteghlal Iran win 2-1 against Al-Gharafa.

Dostonbek Khamdamov's last-minute penalty salvaged a 1-1 draw for Pakhtakor against Brendan Rodgers' Al-Qadisiyah in Tashkent, while Iran's Traktor was held to a 0-0 draw by Qatar's Shamal.

The top eight teams of the 16-team East and West Asia leagues will qualify for the elimination round.