Still in search of their first win of the 2023/24 Saudi Pro League season, Al-Nassr will look to bounce back when they face Al-Fateh on Friday at Prince Abdullah bin Jalawi Stadium in Al-Hasa.
Al-Fateh have gotten their season off to a solid start, with a win and a draw from two games ahead of the game against Al-Nassr. Slaven Bilic’s side picked up their first three points of the season by beating Al-Akhdoud 3-1 at the Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Stadium last Friday.
They were trailing after Florin Tanase’s opener, but Slaven Bilic’s men levelled things up through Mourad Batna, after which Cristian Tello’s brace completed the comeback for the Sons of the Palm. With four points from their first two games, they have climbed up to sixth place in the league standings, just two points adrift of first place.
As for Al-Nassr, the Knights of Najd have spent big to bring in the likes of Sadio Mane, Alex Telles, Marcelo Brozovic, and Seko Fofana during the summer transfer window. However, despite having those stars in the team, Luis Castro’s team have made a poor start to the Pro League season, losing both their opening matches.
After going down 2-1 to Al-Ettifaq, they then even more surprisingly suffered a 2-0 defeat to Al-Taawoun. They returned to winning ways in their AFC Champions League playoff against Shabab Al-Ahli thanks to a 4-2 victory on Tuesday, relishing their hard-fought victory and a return to the AFC Champions League group stage after a three-year hiatus.
Anderson Talisca struck twice, while Marcelo Brozovic and Sultan Al Ghanam each scored once as the Saudi club rallied from behind to win spectacularly. The visitors will now be aiming to carry their continental form into the league here.
Team News & Tactics
Al-Fateh
Al Fateh undergoes main training session in order to face Al Nassr FC 🔷💪🏻 pic.twitter.com/iuk7snwtRt
— AlFateh Saudi club (@EnFatehclub) August 23, 2023
Al Fateh will be without the services of Marwane Saadane due to a hernia surgery, which is likely to keep the defender out of action until early September. Meanwhile, Francisco Velez is still not fully fit to feature here as has yet to make his first appearance of the new season. Although not at the scale of Saudi Pro League big boys, Al Fateh have bolstered the squad at Slaven Bilic’s disposal over the summer, with two significant arrivals.
Jason Denayer has been brought on a free transfer to provide solidity at the back for Bilic’s men, while Lucas Zelarayan, who notched 30 goals and 38 assists in 97 league appearances for Columbus Crew, has been signed to add more firepower to the hosts’ attack.
After their victory against Al-Akhdoud last time out, head coach Slaven Bilic is unlikely to make many changes to his playing XI. Spanish winger Cristian Tello bagged a brace and an assist against Al-Akhdoud and will once again be a major attacking weapon for Al-Fateh.
Striker Firas Al-Buraikan scored the opener in Al-Fateh’s opening day draw against Al-Taawoun, and the 23-year-old Saudi Arabia international could continue to spearhead the attack for the home side here.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Rinne; Al Yousif, Denayer, Lajami, Al Zubaidi; Petros, Bendebka; Tello, Zelarayan, Batna; Al Buraikan
Al-Nassr
Al-Nassr have been subject to criticism as they lost their opening two matches, with problems at both ends of the pitch despite the star-studded cast at their disposal following the summer recruitment drive.
Therefore, the club felt the need to bring in more attacking reinforcements to support Cristiano Ronaldo and Sadio Mane and broke the bank to bring Otavio from FC Porto in a deal worth a whopping €60 million.
The 28-year-old is not really known for his goal threat and instead focuses on using speed, agility, and movement to overwhelm defenders and create chances. He can also slot in various attacking positions in midfield and out wide.
Otávio, is one of us 💛#OtávioIsYellow 🤩
pic.twitter.com/IKpiJzoWxK— AlNassr FC (@AlNassrFC_EN) August 22, 2023
Head coach Luis Castro will likely deploy him as his right-winger, from where the Portuguese regularly cut inside from the wing to try and run the show in a central role, dragging defenders around and waiting for the perfect moment to pick the right pass to Ronaldo or Mane.
Despite outlets linking him with a move away from the club, Anderson Talisca was in fine form last time out and will likely retain his place in the starting XI here. The rest of the team pretty much picks itself up, with Fofana and Brozovic in the engine room.
Alex Telles, who has been sidelined in each of the last three matches through injury, is set to miss out on Friday’s contest, so Al Ghannam will continue to deputise for the Portuguese left-back. Elsewhere, Al Nassr are also closing in on yet another high-profile capture of Manchester City centre-back Aymeric Laporte, who will be a big upgrade on their current central defensive options.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Al Aqidi; Konan, Al Fatil, Al Amri, Al Ghannam; Fofana, Brozovic; Otavio, Talisca, Mane; Ronaldo
Key Stats
- Al-Fateh have won only once in their last 14 meetings against Al-Nassr, with that victory coming in an away game in 2020, while their last home win came back in 2016.
- The hosts are without defeat in five of their last six home games.
- Cristiano Ronaldo has scored five goals from eight appearances across all competition for Al-Nassr.
Player to Watch
Anderson Talisca
Talisca was the star of the show for Al-Nassr last time out, as he scored twice in a comeback victory over Emirati side Shabab Al-Ahli. The midfielder has been very consistent since his move from Chinese side Guangzhou Evergrande back in 2021, having scored 20 goals in back-to-back seasons.
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Though Al-Nassr have signed Ronaldo and former Liverpool attacker Sadio Mane, it is hard to underestimate just how important the Brazilian is to the Saudi side. Despite the 29-year-old’s impressive performance in the playoff game against Shabab Al-Ahli, he could be axed from Al-Nassr’s upcoming AFC Champions League campaign due to rules laid down by the Asian Confederation, according to reports in Sport.
The rules say that only five foreign players are allowed in the competition, and Talisca could be the odd one out. Cristiano Ronaldo, Sadio Mane, Seko Fofana, Marcelo Brozovic, and Alex Telles are all likely to make the Al-Nassr squad for Asia’s premier competition. Nevertheless, Talisca will still have a key role in pushing Al-Alawi’s Saudi Pro League title bid.
Prediction
Al-Fateh 0-2 Al-Nassr
On paper, Al-Nassr have a much superior, star-studded squad and are overwhelming favourites to win against Al-Fateh. But the same was expected in the last league game against Al-Taawoun, which turned out to be a frustrating evening for Ronaldo and co.
However, their recent dominance of this fixture will surely give them the belief that they can get the job done here. While we expect anything but a straightforward affair, we are backing the visitors to emerge triumphant at the sound of the final whistle.