Cristiano Ronaldo appears to make obscene gesture in response to Lionel Messi chant

Cristiano Ronaldo appeared to make an insulting gesture towards fans as he wakled off the pitch on Tuesday night in a video released on social media.

Veteran forward Ronaldo played the full 90 minutes as his Al-Nassr side lost 2-0 against Al-Hilal on Tuesday.

The result sees Dinko Jelicic’s side concede further ground in the title race, with second-placed Al-Nassr now three points behind leaders Al-Ittihad, having played a game more, with Al-Shabab in third three points behind them with a game in hand.

Superstar Ronaldo, 37, was furious as he stormed off the pitch – and footage online seems to show him grabbing his crotch in response to fans chanting the name of his rival Lionel Messi.

As supporters inside the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s capital, sung ‘Messi! Messi! Messi!’ repeatedly to seemingly taunt CR7, the former Manchester United player appeared to put his hand in his genital area and pulled upwards.

Cristiano Ronaldo (above) appeared to make an obscene gesture towards rival fans

Video released on social media shows the veteran Portuguese forward appearing to grab his crotch after supporters chanted the name of his rival Lionel Messi after Al-Nassr’s 2-0 defeat

The clip shows Ronaldo seeming to hold his genital area after fans shouted: ‘Messi! Messi!’

The clip shows Ronaldo trudging off the field and past the media zone, before holding his crotch and moving it around.

While at the end of the video, he appears to look up towards the fans chanting Messi’s name.

A similar video on social media shows him doing the same thing just after crossing the touchline.

Earlier in the game, Ronaldo made headlines after bringing down an opponent in a chokehold.

Rather than let his feet do the talking, Ronaldo instead was booked just before the hour mark while his side were 1-0 down after making a challenge that resembled something more like you would see in a WWE ring. 

The former Man United star leaped onto his opponent, wrapping his right arm around his neck before using his body weight to wrestle him to the ground. 

Despite the rather overzealous conduct from the 38-year-old, he was only booked by former Premier League referee Michael Oliver who was officiating the game.

This was despite there being no clear attempt to play the aerial ball above their heads as he made his challenge.

Cristiano Ronaldo leapt onto his opponent before wrapping his right arm around his neck

The forward then pulled back to wrestle him to the ground before picking up a yellow card

A frustrated Ronaldo was booked by Michael Oliver following the chokehold on Tuesday

Al-Nassr saw their title hopes take a significant blow as they lost 2-0 at league leaders Al-Hilal

With 15 minutes to go and his side 2-0 down, Ronaldo did eventually find the net after running onto a long ball before firing home, only to be controversially flagged offside.

Al-Nassr recently parted ways with manager Rudi Garcia amid reports of dressing room discontent, not least reportedly related to the Portuguese superstar Ronaldo

He was replaced by former youth team coach Jelicic, who took over as interim boss. Needing a victory away at Al-Hilal to ensure they stayed in touch with the league leaders, they conceded twice from the penalty spot courtesy of Odion Ighalo.

The 198-cap Portugal international Ronaldo has scored 11 goals in 11 league games for Al-Nassr – 11 in 13 in all competitions – since joining on a massive three-year contract in December after his contract at Old Trafford was terminated.

Ronaldo’s representatives have been approached for comment.