The 41-year-old Portuguese forward was withdrawn for Saudi midfielder Abdullah Al-Khaibari as Al Nassr trailed 2-0 at the break. Despite being down to 10 men after goalkeeper Bento was sent off after just 13 minutes, Al Nassr staged a remarkable turnaround, with Sadio Mané scoring a 74th-minute goal and João Félix assisting the equaliser for Abdelelah Al-Amri before Mane struck a 90th-minute winner.
ESPN Soccer quotes Postecoglou as saying: "With Cristiano, we know he hasn't played a lot of football. With 10 men, to have him out there after 45 minutes? He did a great job in the first half. But we needed a different approach in the second half." The Al Nassr boss praised his team's character, saying: "Nothing is by luck. Everything is hard work and sweat, as you can see. But what you have to understand is that it's not just about the player quality, it's about what kind of person they are."