A blockbuster Saudi Pro League clash awaits us on Friday as defending champions Al-Ittihad look to maintain their perfect start to the new season against a star-studded Al-Hilal.
Two of the most successful clubs in Saudi Arabia will lock horns against each other on Friday night as table-toppers Al-Ittihad take on Al-Hilal at the Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium in Jeddah.
As the new season is gaining momentum, reigning Saudi Pro League champions Al-Ittihad are stepping onto the field as a true powerhouse, with a strong team made even stronger by the likes of N’Golo Kante and Karim Benzema joining their ranks.
Indeed, Nuno Espirito Santo’s side have made a flying start to the 2023/24 season. They are without blemish after four league encounters this term, defeating Al-Raed, Al-Tai, Al-Riyadh, and Al-Wehda without conceding a goal and scoring a whopping 12 goals across the four games.
On the other hand, Al-Hilal ensured they did not lose further ground on Al-Ittihad by beating Al-Ettifaq 2-0 to inflict the first defeat of Steven Gerrard’s Saudi Pro League career. They may still be waiting on club-record signing Neymar to make his debut. But the 18-time league champions still possess more than enough quality in the Brazilian forward’s absence following a remarkable summer transfer window.
Two of those new signings combined forces to break the deadlock when, in the 24th minute, Malcom ran onto Aleksandar Mitrovic’s headed knock-down and struck a first-time finish into the bottom corner.
Saudi Arabia international Salem Al Dawsari, who made the headlines with his spectacular winning goal against Argentina at the 2022 World Cup, netted Hilal’s second shortly before halftime with a superb volley from the edge of the area to wrap up a comfortable victory. Ahead of their top-of-the-table clash with Al-Ittihad, the Hard Tackle takes a closer look at both sides and how they could line up for this highly anticipated encounter.
Team News & Tactics
Al-Ittihad
Karim Benzema was forced off with an injury just 42 minutes into the first half for Al Ittihad 😞 pic.twitter.com/pmeQkAyXaA
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) August 28, 2023
Although Al-Ittihad extended their perfect start to the Saudi Pro League season by easing past Al-Wehda 3-0 on Monday night, the victory was marred somewhat by an injury to star striker Karim Benzema. The reigning Ballon d’Or holder was forced to leave the pitch towards the end of the first half. And the club have confirmed that the 35-year-old Frenchman has sustained a muscle injury.
Without a doubt, he will be a big miss for the hosts. The Frenchman has scored one and assisted two goals in the opening four games to start the campaign, making the former Real Madrid superstar the go-to attacker for Nuno Espirito Santo’s troops.
Benzema was replaced by fellow summer signing Jota against Al-Wehda, and the Portuguese winger made his mark on the match by scoring Al-Ittihad’s second goal in the 67th minute, finishing from a tight angle after latching on to a classy pass from playmaker Igor Coronado. Jota will likely start in the False-Nine role if Benzema misses out.
In Abderrazak Hamdallah, they have last season’s top scorer, who has already scored four goals this term. Al-Ittihad’s attack could be further strengthened before the end of the transfer window, with the club still heavily linked with a mega-money move for Liverpool superstar Mohamed Salah.
The hosts’ stingy defensive record is a reflection of a high-quality midfield base comprising N’Golo Kante and Fabinho, supported by the back-five marshalled by defender Osama Hawsawi.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Grohe; Al-Olayan, Hawsawi, Sharahili, Alshanqeeti; Kante, Fabinho; Romarinho, Hamdallah, Coronado; Jota
Al-Hilal
Al Hilal’s record signing Neymar has started training following his grand unveiling in Riyadh last weekend. But this match may come too soon for him as he has not yet regained full fitness. Manager Jorge Jesus said the 31-year-old former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain forward might be available only by the middle of next month.
The visitors will welcome back midfield general Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, who served a one-match suspension after being sent off against Al-Raed. The Serbian enforcer will slot in the engine room alongside Ruben Neves straightaway.
Malcom got his fourth goal of the campaign in the previous game and looks like his side’s biggest attacking threat alongside target-man striker Aleksandar Mitrovic. The former Zenit St Petersburg winger has great positional awareness, which will make him capable of running behind the Al-Ittihad backline to pose a threat in the game.
Jesus will continue with the 4-2-3-1 formation that he has utilised so effectively in recent games, with World Cup semi-finalist Yassine Bounou manning the goal following his transfer from Sevilla, and former Chelsea and Napoli defensive powerhouse leading the back-four.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Bono; Al Shahrani, Koulibaly, Albulayhi, Abdulhamid; Neves, Milinkovic-Savic; Al Dawsari, Malcolm, Michael; Mitrovic
Key Stats
- Al-Ittihad are among the only two teams to have won all of their league games so far this season.
- Al-Hilal is unbeaten in the previous four meetings of this fixture. Last season, the visitors won the away match and played a 2-2 draw in the reverse fixture.
- Both clubs have been free-scoring at the start of the season and have already bagged 12 goals and ten goals, respectively, in the new season.
- Three of the last five matches between these two teams have produced over 2.5 goals.
Player to Watch
Aleksandar Mitrovic
The former Fulham striker does not have the same groaning trophy cabinet and UEFA Champions League-winning credentials as some of the players in both squads. But what he does have is a towering frame and a head for goal that bullies defenders.
Despite never reaching the heights of Premier League stardom, Al Hilal’s new frontman bagged more than 40 goals in England’s second tier, which could be a better comparison for Saudi Pro League defenders for the time being. He also scored 15 Premier League goals last time out, which is no mean feat either. Once the Serbian goal machine gets going, he will likely score goals for fun in the Middle East.
Prediction
Al-Ittihad 1-1 Al-Hilal
Both teams boast a near-perfect record heading into this high-voltage clash, and with just two points separating these two sides at the top of the league table, their meeting in Jeddah has all the makings of a keenly contested affair. And the result could significantly influence the trajectory of the title race.
Eventually, both will have to settle for a single point on Friday, as they are too evenly matched to separate. Both boast a variety of attacking talent. But they also have a rock-solid defensive system to avoid conceding goals at the back. With that in mind, The Hard Tackle predicts a share of the spoils between Al-Ittihad and Al-Hilal in what could be a tight but fairly entertaining affair.