Cristiano Ronaldo sent off for appearing to elbow bitter rival before he resists urge to furiously punch ball at referee

CRISTIANO RONALDO has been sent off after appearing to elbow an opponent in the chest.

The former Manchester United star, 39, had been in action for Al-Nassr in the Saudi Super Cup when the flashpoint occurred.

ReutersCristiano Ronaldo appeared to drive his elbow into his opponent[/caption]

ReutersThe 39-year-old was frustrated with his opponent[/caption]

ReutersHe was promptly shown a red card for his elbow[/caption]

Ronaldo motioned as if he wanted to punch the ball at the referee

With his side trailing 2-0 courtesy of goals by Salem Al-Dawsari and ex-Barcelona ace Malcom, Ronaldo‘s frustration got the better of him.

After sliding the ball out of play, Al-Hilal defender Ali Al-Bulayhi tried to prevent the Portuguese from grabbing the ball to take a quick throw-in.

When Ronaldo nudged him out the way, Al-Bulayhi appeared to square up to him.

At this point, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner seemed to ram his elbow into his opponent’s chest.

Al-Bulayhi, 34, went down in a heap, with players from both sides immediately running over.

Kalidou Koulibaly went rushing in and was shoved, before Aymeric Laporte tried to act as peacemaker.

When the referee flashed his red card at Ronaldo, the forward appeared to motion as if he wanted to punch the ball at the official.

He then sarcastically gave the ref a thumbs up, before motioning over at Al-Bulayhi, still crumpled in a heap.

As he left the pitch, Ronaldo was taunted by “Messi” chants from the crowd.

This is not the first time that Al-Bulayhi has upset Ronaldo.

In a Saudi Pro League clash last season, Ronaldo accused the 34-year-old of play-acting.

On that occasion it was Al-Bulayhi who went on to be sent off after picking up two yellow cards.

The veteran defender has also had run-ins with the likes of Lionel Messi and Son Heung-min.

During Saudi Arabia‘s clash with Argentina at the 2022 World Cup, Al-Bulayhi went head-to-head with Messi, telling him “you won’t win”.

Saudi Arabia went on to win the match 2-1, although Messi and Co had the last laugh by going on to win the tournament.

When Saudi Arabia played South Korea at the Asian Cup earlier this year, Al-Bulayhi shoved Son.

The Tottenham star refused to rise to it, instead smiling as the pair exchanged words.

Al-Bulayhi then seemed to pull Son’s hair, but again the forward didn’t react.

Despite Ronaldo having been sent off, Sadio Mane did manage to grab a goal back for Al-Nassr.

But they went on to lose 2-1, with league leaders Al-Hilal going on to advance to the Saudi Super Cup final, in which they will face Al-Ittihad.

ReutersAli Al-Bulayhi and Lionel Messi clashed at the 2022 World Cup[/caption]