Cristiano Ronaldo has lost his winning touch: Third-successive trophy-less season proves Al-Nassr superstar's influence off the pitch isn't mirrored on it anymore

Al-Nassr's 2023-24 campaign ended in heart-breaking fashion as they suffered a penalty shootout defeat to arch-rivals Al-Hilal in the Kings Cup final. It was a chaotic showpiece event that saw three players sent off, including former Chelsea defender Kalidou Koulibaly, and there was very little to separate the two teams on the night.

But other than hitting the post with an overhead kick from an offside position and converting his spot-kick in the shootout, Ronaldo had no meaningful impact on proceedings. He collapsed to his knees in tears at the final whistle, which was an understandable emotional reaction given the fact he has played a total of 4,969 minutes for club and country this season - more than any of the other 25 Portugal players who have been called up for Euro 2024 by head coach Roberto Martinez.

It was, however, Al-Nassr's third loss to Al-Hilal of the campaign, who beat Ronaldo and Co. 3-0 at home on their way to lifting the league title and knocked them out of the Saudi Super Cup in the semi-finals.

A theory for Al-Hilal's dominance has been floated by popular Saudi journalist Mohamed Al Skiekh, which doesn't reflect well on Ronaldo. “It is not luck, but there is strong work in Al-Hilal and a successful strategy from its management," he said on MBC Action. "All of this combines with the love of all elements for the club. Within Al-Hilal, there is no player who considers himself the only star.”

Al-Nassr couldn't find any salvation in the AFC Champions League either, as they suffered a quarter-final exit at the hands of Al Ain. Hernan Crespo's side edged the first leg 1-0 in the United Arab Emirates, but the result probably would have been different had Ronaldo not squandered two gilt-edge chances from close-range - the kind he'd have gobbled up easily in his prime.

He did make amends briefly in the second leg by scoring a last-gasp penalty in extra-time to give Al-Nassr a 4-3 win and force a shootout, but Al Ain eventually came out on top, and would go on to win Asia's most prestigious club trophy.

The European version of the Champions League was Ronaldo's playground, as the former Real Madrid man won the competition five times while scoring a record 140 goals. He was the ultimate difference-maker, but also knew what it meant to be a team player, especially towards the end of his time at Santiago Bernabeu as he became more of a poacher.

Ronaldo's predatory instincts are still reasonably sharp, but current Al-Nassr boss Luis Castro makes sure everything is geared towards the veteran striker, which has caused an imbalance. "Al Nassr's real problem is that Ronaldo is the one leading the team, not Mr. Castro," former Tottenham and Egypt star Mido said on the SBA Sport channel in March. "Ronaldo decides everything in the team. I respect the tradition and Al-Nassr fans, and the team must be bigger than any one player. Mr Castro is too weak."

Off the pitch, Ronaldo remains one of the most influential figures in football, and his CR7 brand is still going strong. To his credit, the Sporting CP academy graduate has also fully immersed himself into a new culture, and is seen as the face of the Saudi Pro League revolution.

A host of other top Europe-based players have followed Ronaldo to the Middle East, including Neymar, Karim Benzema and Sadio Mane, and more blockbuster deals are likely to be on the cards in the summer transfer window. But Ronaldo hasn't set a shining example with his conduct on the pitch.

Opposing fans have consistently taunted Ronaldo with chants for his eternal rival Lionel Messi, and the Al-Nassr star has been unable to control his temper. His most recent outburst came after a 3-2 win over Al-Shabab in February, as he made an obscene fist-pumping gesture in the direction of the home fans, which led to him being hit with a one-game ban and a hefty fine.

Ronaldo has also let himself down with his general in-game discipline, often lambasting referees when things are not going his way. He even received a red card in Al-Nassr's Super Cup loss to Al-Hilal for throwing an elbow at Ali Al-Bulaihi, which felt like a new low for one of the game's all-time greats.

These shameless acts of petulance were far less frequent when Ronaldo was at his peak. Now, with every poor first touch, missed chance and wayward pass, it's clear to see the frustration bubbling just under the surface in Ronaldo's body language as he desperately tries to fight off Father Time.

The start of Ronaldo's decline can be traced back to his homecoming at Old Trafford in August 2021. United re-signed the Portuguese from Juventus for £20m ($25m), after finishing second in the Premier League the previous season, and he scored twice on his second debut against Newcastle to spark talk of a potential title tilt.

The honeymoon period didn't last long, however, as United fell out of the top four and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was given his marching orders. Ronaldo finished 2021-22 with a respectable haul of 24 goals in all competitions, but the Red Devils ended up empty-handed and posted their worst Premier League points tally of the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era.

It didn't take a genius to work out that United took a huge step backwards as a collective by trying so hard to accommodate Ronaldo, which Erik ten Hag immediately sought to address after succeeding Solskjaer. And when it became clear he would have to accept a bench role, Ronaldo went to war with Ten Hag in a bid to manufacture an escape route, eventually departing the club in November 2022.

Solskjaer has since admitted that bringing Ronaldo back "turned out wrong", as he abandoned the high-intensity formula that had helped United start competing with the best teams on domestic and European fronts once again. "Without him [pressing], we had to change a little bit the different roles we'd gotten used to," the Norwegian told the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet. "We were one of the highest pressing teams before [Ronaldo joined]."

Al-Nassr haven't got worse since signing Ronaldo, but they won't catch Al-Hilal next term if they continue to pander to him in the same way United did.

Ronaldo will definitely be staying with Al-Nassr for at least one more year, with CEO Guido Fienga claiming that the centre forward's "blood has turned yellow", and it has even been suggested his contract could be extended through to 2026.

The man himself issued a strong rallying cry after Al-Nassr's King's Cup failure, writing on Instagram: "Play, learn, grow, repeat. Thank you all for your support this season. We will come back even stronger!"

But after three seasons without silverware, Ronaldo is showing no signs of growth, let alone humility. Al-Hilal finished 14 points clear of Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League table, and will be gunning for all the other top honours again next term under Jorge Jesus, especially with Neymar set to make his long-awaited return from an ACL injury.

The only time Al-Nassr beat Al-Hilal was in the final of the Arab Club Champions Cup, which is considered a friendly tournament and is not officially recognised by FIFA. That didn't stop Ronaldo from trying to pass Al-Nassr's triumph off as a major landmark in the club's history, though.

"Extremely proud to have helped the team winning this important trophy for the first time!" he said after scoring a brace in the showpiece. "Thank you to everyone in the club that was involved in this great achievement, and to my family and friends for always being by my side!"

Al-Hilal saved their best performances for when the real competitions got underway, and proved beyond a shadow of doubt that they are better all-round team than Al-Nassr. To close the gap, Castro will have to adopt a more flexible tactical approach, but his main priority is clearly keeping Ronaldo happy, and until that changes Al-Nassr will continue to play catch-up.

None of this bodes well for Portugal either. Ronaldo really should have retired from international duty after a disastrous 2022 World Cup that saw him lose his place in the team under Fernando Santos, but he's been reinstalled as his country's main man since Roberto Martinez's appointment as manager.

Ronaldo did repay Martinez's faith by scoring 10 goals in Portugal's flawless European Championship qualifying campaign, but they benefitted from a very favourable draw. In his most recent international outing, Ronaldo only mustered one shot from open play as Portugal slumped to a surprise friendly defeat against Slovenia, and spent most of the game complaining to the officials and throwing himself to the ground.

We will probably see more of the same in Germany later this month. Portugal won't have everything their own way against Turkey, Georgia and the Czech Republic in Group F, not while Martinez continues to build his team around Ronaldo, and the likes of France, England, Germany and Spain look in far better shape to go all the way.

There is a reason that the trophies have dried up for Ronaldo in recent years, and that's because he's a shadow of the player he once was. The fact that Al-Nassr were even able to sign him in the first place was purely down to a lack of interest from top European clubs.

Portugal will probably have to think seriously about moving on from Ronaldo if their Euros campaign doesn't go according to plan, but Al-Nassr seem fully committed to keeping their one-man show running for the foreseeable future. Real forward progress will probably continue to elude them as a result.