Brendan Rodgers' moment with Cristiano Ronaldo spotted before getting one over on ex-Man Utd star

Brendan Rodgers shared a warm embrace with Cristiano Ronaldo ahead of a game in the Saudi Pro League, and the former Liverpool boss went on to get one over on the Real Madrid legend

Cristiano Ronaldo and Brendan Rodgers embraced ahead of Al Nassr Vs. Al Qadsiah(Image: )

Former Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers and Manchester United legend Cristiano Ronaldo shared a warm embrace prior to a Saudi Pro League game between Al Qadsiah and Al Nassr.

The pair were seen smiling and chatting with each other on the sideline before the game at Al Nassr's Al Awwal Park, which was won 2-1 by Rodgers' side.

Rodgers and Ronaldo have never worked together, and it's not entirely clear why the pair embraced so familiarly, but it appeared clear that there is a mutual respect between the two men.

Rodgers managed Liverpool in a couple of games against Real Madrid in the Champions League in 2014, and spoke extremely highly of Ronaldo at the time – which usually goes down well with the self-confident Portuguese.

“He’s a player off the charts," Rodgers said ahead of one of those games. "His evolution in recent years, the way he has become a goalscorer has been amazing.

“He is fast, strong and has personality. I love it. They have amazing talents all over the field… and when the space opens up there is no one better on the counter-attack than Ronaldo…”

Rodgers' Liverpool lost both games against Madrid in the 2014-15 Champions League group phase, with Ronaldo scoring a brace in a 3-0 win for Los Blancos at Anfield.

Fast forward to the present day and Ronaldo is still banging in the goals – he netted Al-Nassr's only goal in the game against Al Qadsiah from the penalty spot, but it counted for nothing as goals from Julian Quinones and Nahitan Nandez secured all three points for Rodgers' side.

“We are very happy with today’s victory, and we dedicate it to our fans and to the people of Khobar, who truly deserve this win," Rodgers said after the game.

“We showed our capabilities against a big club like Al-Nassr. In the second half, we needed to improve our ball possession, and that is something we worked on throughout the match.

“We tried to force Al-Nassr to play long balls, and we asked our attackers to drop back and contribute defensively. All the players delivered an outstanding performance both offensively and defensively, and their tactical discipline was clearly evident.

“Our goal is to continue winning and to make this victory a strong motivation for achieving more positive results in the upcoming matchweeks of the Saudi Pro League.”