Saudi Pro League duo Al-Hilal and Al-Nassr lock horns for the final of the Riyadh Season Cup – a mid-season friendly tournament – at the Kingdom Arena on Thursday evening.
The two teams have put themselves in with a shot at glory after winning their opening matches against Lionel Messi's Inter Miami.
Match preview
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After concluding 2023 with a remarkable 20-game winning run in all competitions, scoring 60 goals in the process, Al-Hilal kick-started 2024 with a thrilling 4-3 victory over Inter Miami just over a week ago.
Both Messi and Luis Suarez were on the scoresheet for the MLS outfit, but Al-Hilal came out on top courtesy of an 88th-minute winner from Malcom, who found the net after first-half strikes from Alexander Mitrovic, Abdullah Al-Hamddan and Michael.
Jorge Jesus will hope that a potential triumph for his side against city rivals Al-Nassr in the Riyadh Season Cup can act as a springboard for further success this season, as lifting silverware in the Saudi Pro League, King's Cup and AFC Champions League is high on the club's agenda.
Al-Hilal have put themselves in a strong position to win a record-extending 19th Saudi Pro League title and take the crown from current holders Al Ittihad this season, as they currently sit seven points clear at the top of the table with 15 league games remaining.
Their nearest challengers are none other than Thursday's opponents Al-Nassr, whom they have beaten in three of their last five meetings in all competitions, most recently claiming a 3-0 home victory in December.
Since losing that match to Al-Hilal, Al-Nassr have put together a seven-game unbeaten run, including six consecutive victories in which they scored 27 goals. Luis Castro's men unsurprisingly enter Thursday's contest in buoyant mood after thumping Inter Miami 6-0 in their most recent game last week.
The Global One comfortably coped without the presence of talisman Cristiano Ronaldo, as Anderson Talisca netted a hat-trick amidst strikes from Otavio, Mohammed Maran and Aymeric Laporte – the latter of whom scored from inside his own half – to ensure that the Saudi side cruised to their biggest victory of the season.
Al-Nassr will be keen to maintain their positive form ahead of next week's last-16 tie with Al Feiha in the AFC Champions League – a competition that they are desperate to win for the first time in their history.
While success on Thursday is not a given for Al-Nassr, who have only won two of their last eight encounters with Al-Hilal, they did come out on top against the Blue Wave the last time that these two teams met in a final. Indeed, Al-Nassr won 2-1 in extra time with 10 men, with Ronaldo netting a brace, to win their first-ever Arab Club Champions Cup in August last year.
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Team News
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Al-Hilal are still having to cope without marquee summer signing Neymar, who is recovering from an ACL injury, but Jesus's side could be bolstered by the return of up to 12 players returning from international duty.
While as many as nine Saudi Arabian players are expected to return following their spell at the Asian Cup, Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou, Senegalese defender Kalidou Koulibaly and Mauritanian midfielder Khadim Diaw are all in contention to return following their respective eliminations from the Africa Cup of Nations.
New recruit Renan Lodi was handed his debut last time out and is expected to continue at left-back, while the likes of Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Ruben Neves and Mitrovic – who has scored 25 goals in 26 games this season – are all set to retain their places in the first XI.
As for Al-Nassr, Ronaldo was absent from the win over Inter Miami after sustaining a knock, but the five-time Ballon d'Or winner – who has scored 24 goals in 25 matches this term and turned 39 on Monday – is expected to return to the starting lineup on Thursday.
Sadio Mane is also in contention to return after representing Senegal at AFCON, and he could join Ronaldo in attack with Talisca and Otavio – Maran and Abdulaziz Al-Aliwa could therefore drop down to the substitutes' bench.
After over a year on the sidelines recovering from an elbow injury, David Ospina was forced off in the first half with a muscle problem on his return to the Al-Nassr side last time out; the Colombian is a major doubt for Thursday and could be replaced between the sticks by either Waleed Abdullah or Nawaf Al-Aqidi.
Al-Hilal possible starting lineup:
Bono; Al Shahrani, Al Dawsari, Koulibaly, Lodi; Milinkovic-Savic, Neves; Michael, Al-Hamdan, Malcom; Mitrovic
Al-Nassr possible starting lineup:
Abdullah; Boushal, Alamri, Laporte, Telles; Al Sulaiheem, Brozovic; Talisca, Otavio, Mane; Ronaldo
We say: Al-Hilal 2-2 Al-Nassr (Al-Hilal to win on penalties)
An entertaining yet closely-fought contest could be on the cards between two attack-minded teams who are set to be boosted by the return of a number of key players.
Al-Hilal will be seeking revenge against Al-Nassr following their final defeat in the Arab Club Champions Cup, and considering their recent record against their Riyadh rivals, we can see the Blue Wave edging this encounter, potentially via a penalty shootout.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Oliver Thomas
