After Al Hilal's 1-1 draw with Al Taawon in Saudi Pro League matchday 24 on 24/2, Ruben Neves criticized the referee for overlooking a clear penalty. The Al Hilal midfielder stated that refereeing consistency in the league was lacking, especially amidst a tense title race with Al Nassr.

"We are in March, and four teams are competing for the championship," Neves said. "This is one of the few leagues globally with such high competition. Everyone needs to be at the same level because what we see in one match and another is completely different. I have seen players act like it's basketball or handball in the box, and the referee reviewed the screen but still did not award a penalty."

One day later, Al Nassr defeated Al Najima 5-0, extending their lead over Al Hilal to three points. In this match, Ronaldo opened the scoring from the penalty spot, netting his 21st goal in 21 Saudi Pro League matches this season.

Ronaldo did not perform his familiar spinning jump celebration. Instead, he made a slam dunk motion - a scoring move in basketball - three times before his teammates joined him to celebrate. According to Spanish newspaper Marca, the Portuguese superstar's action was a sarcastic response to Neves' earlier statement.

Al Nassr's English social media account on X also joined in, posting two photos of Ronaldo's new celebration with the caption: "Whether it's football or basketball, with the greatest player of all time (GOAT), it's always a perfect slam dunk."

The post immediately went viral, attracting over 740,000 views, over 300 comments, over 3,000 reposts, and 24,000 likes.

The viral post on Al Nassr's X page.

In the already intense Saudi Pro League title race, the unique exchange between Ronaldo and Neves - two Portuguese internationals - promises to escalate tensions further in the season's decisive stage.

In the next round, Al Nassr will visit Al Fayha, the 11th-ranked team in the league, while Al Hilal will travel to Al Shabab's home ground.

Hong Duy (via Marca)