Harambee Stars and Al Duhail striker Michael Olunga is optimistic despite his side going down 4-3 against Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr in the Asian Champions League on Tuesday, October 24, 2023.

Olunga had an impressive individual performance given that he scored, had another goal ruled out, and provided an assist in Group E’s encounter.

Olunga’s reaction

Ahead of the next meeting, the Kenyan forward is optimistic about getting a positive outcome.

“Spirited fight against a good opponent. Picked positives, looking forward to return leg,” Olunga posted on his social media pages.

Al-Nassr scored the opening goal when Talisca found the back of the net with an assist from Ronaldo before Olunga scored a goal that was ruled out for offside.

Senegal international Sadio Mane added the second for the home side in the early moments of the second half before Ronaldo scored the third one.

Ismaeel Mohammad and Almoez Ali scored for Al Duhail before Ronaldo extended the lead for the home side.

Olunga, with an assist from Almoez, scored for the visitors the third goal, but it was too late to deny the Saudi Arabian outfit a third straight win in the group.

Ronaldo on records

Ronaldo’s double against Olunga’s side means that he has scored three goals in the competition, having scored one against FC Istiklol.
 
“I don’t care about the records because I enjoy my time with Al-Nassr. The coach works to help us be a better team. I am very happy to represent Al-Nassr,” Ronaldo, a five-time Ballon d’Or winner, said.

On the other hand, Olunga’s newly-appointed head coach, Christophe Galtier, said he was satisfied with how his players performed.

“I am very satisfied with my team’s performance. We had seven clear chances to score, but the difference was that Al Nassr took theirs well.

“The individual abilities made the difference in the match. We didn’t play well in the first half, but after we were down 3-0, we reacted strongly.”