The First Asian Saudi Summit Belongs to Al Hilal

Al Hilal settled the first continental Saudi summit with a 2-0 win against guest Ittihad Jeddah at the Kingdom Arena stadium in Riyadh during the quarter finals first leg, a win that pushes Al Hilal a step further towards the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League.

The game’s two goals were scored by Serbian Aleksandar Mitrović (scored through a penalty kick at minute 40) and by Salem Aldawsari (at minute 42). Al Ittihad had to finish the game with 10 players after having their midfielder, French N’Golo Kanté, was kicked out at the 66th minute.

Thereby, Al Hilal once again reaffirms their superiority over their opponent, Al Ittihad, after having beaten the latter with a score of 3-1 at the same stadium just last Friday in the Saudi league. This means that Al Hilal has covered a great deal of distance in their journey in the championship in which they hold the record number for most titles (4 titles, the last of which being in 2021).

However, Al Hilal’s win is countered by a lot of worry by the club’s fans, due to the injuries sustained by the duo of Serbian Sergej Milinković-Savić, and Salem Aldawsari; the former dropped from the game at minute 85 while the latter dropped only 5 minutes later.

The duo failed to see the game through till the end, considering that Savić went out with the medical staff and was being treated by a bandage to the left foot, while Aldawsari was unable to walk, which prompted the coaching team, headed by Portuguese Jorge Jesus, to replace him immediately.
This double injury of the duo constitutes a huge hit to the blue team, due to those two players’ importance on the tactical level.

It’s worth noting that through his goal, Aldawsari has become the top scorer of this classico with 8 goals to his name.

The two teams will meet again next Tuesday for the second leg in Jeddah.

Betway reigns supreme as Saudi Arabia top online betting site, delivering seamless betting experiences and a diverse range of options for sports fans.