RIYADH: The opening day of Matchday 29 in the Saudi Pro League produced mixed results in the title race. Al-Hilal bounced back from their draw against Al-Taawoun with a crushing 6-0 victory over Al-Kholood, while Al-Ahli failed to overcome the tough challenge of Al-Fayha and were held to a 1-1 draw.
This has altered the dynamic of the table. Prior to the international break, Al-Nassr sat just seven points ahead of Al-Qadsiah in fourth place, with pressure mounting from three challengers. Since then, the rest of the title contenders have dropped points, meaning a win for Al-Nassr this weekend could extend their lead to five points over second-placed Al-Hilal.
However, If Al-Hilal replicate the form they showed against Al-Kholood — their opponents in the King’s Cup final later this season — then Al-Nassr may have reason to worry ahead of May 7, when they host Al-Hilal at Al-Awwal Park.
Kicking off the high-scoring night for Al-Hilal was Moteb Al-Harbi, one of the players who has suffered most as a result of Simone Inzaghi’s tactical style. A left-back by trade, Al-Harbi has spent most of the season in central defence before recently shifting to the right side.
While that at times has left him exposed in individual duels against the league’s best wingers, this time it worked to his advantage in attack. In the seventh minute, Al-Harbi cut inside from the right before unleashing powerful shot past Juan Cozzani for the opener.
What followed was the Karim Benzema show. The Frenchman’s movement tormented the Al-Kholood defence, and a calculated run following an Al-Hilal counter-attack allowed him to receive the ball behind Mansour Camara before sliding home the second moments later.
His effectiveness between the lines opened space for Malcom in the 29th minute, before the Brazilian was brought down in the box by Muhammad Sawaan. Benzema stepped up for the penalty, but while Cozzani saved his initial effort, the Frenchman nodded in the rebound to extend Al-Hilal’s lead.
Benzema completed his hat-trick on the edge of half-time, with Sergej Milinkovic-Savic’s cross finding him behind Edgar Utkus to put Al-Hilal 4-0 ahead.
Al-Hilal kept the tempo high in the second half, with Salem Al-Dawsari scoring his first of the night in the 55th minute after winter signing Murad Al-Hawsawi created the chance moments after coming on. The Blues capped off their performance in the 76th minute when Benzema set up substitute Marcos Leonardo for an easy sixth.
While he did not get on the scoresheet, Milinkovic-Savic was arguably the standout performer of the night. Two assists and three secondary assists meant the Serbian was involved in nearly every Al-Hilal goal, with his line-breaking pass for Benzema’s first the pick of the bunch.
Earlier in the night, Al-Ahli’s fate for the weekend was sealed as they remained in third place after dropping two valuable points to Al-Fayha.
Ivan Toney equalled Omar Al-Somah’s record of 27 goals in a single season for Al-Ahli by opening the scoring in the 36th minute, only for Al-Fayha to bounce back in the second half when Jason capitalised on a defensive mishap to slide the ball past Edouard Mendy.
The encounter ended with late drama, as Toney and Matthias Jaissle left the pitch furious after the referee waved away appeals for a penalty on Mikel Villanueva’s suspected handball deep into stoppage time.
The draw pushes Al-Ahli one point closer to Al-Nassr, reducing the gap to four — albeit temporarily — as the league leaders face Al-Okhdood on Saturday in a bid to extend their advantage at the top.
Elsewhere, Al-Ittihad and NEOM played out a thrilling seven-goal encounter in Jeddah. Said Benrahma and Luciano Rodriguez gave NEOM a 2-0 lead inside the opening 20 minutes, before a six-minute brace from Youssef En-Nesyri brought Al-Ittihad level before half time.
Houssem Aouar’s strike in the 49th minute gave Al-Ittihad the advantage, only for Muhannad Al-Saad to equalise for NEOM six minutes later. Ultimately, NEOM secured the victory in stoppage time through Ala Al-Hajji’s to seal a memorable 4-3 victory.
