Portuguese forward João Félix made a dream start to life in Saudi Arabia with a debut hat-trick as Al-Nassr crushed Al-Taawoun 5-0 on Friday in the Saudi Pro League opener.
The former Chelsea striker opened his account inside seven minutes before adding two more in the second half. Cristiano Ronaldo also found the net from the penalty spot, while Kingsley Coman scored his first goal in Saudi football to complete the rout.
Across the capital, Al-Nassr’s fierce rivals Al-Hilal also kicked off their campaign in style with a 2-0 victory over Al-Riyadh. Salem Al-Dawsari was the architect of both first-half goals, setting up Moteb Al-Harbi’s thunderous strike before combining with Malcom for the Brazilian’s curled finish.
In Friday’s other fixture, Al-Khaleej defeated Al-Shabab 4-1 away from home.
Defending champions Al-Ittihad will begin their title defense on Saturday against Al-Okhdood.
