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Al-Nassr
Saudi Pro League | Gameweek 4
Aug 29, 2023 at 7pm UK
Mrsool Park

Al-Nassr
4 - 0
Al Shabab

Ronaldo (13' pen., 38' pen.), Mane (41'), Al-Ghanam (80')
Mane (43'), Boushal (89')
FT(HT: 3-0)

Alsebyani (29'), Al-Sharari (33'), Cuellar (37'), Santos (43'), Babhir (77')
Banega (78')

Preview: Al-Nassr vs. Al Shabab - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Tuesday's Saudi Pro League clash between Al-Nassr and Al Shabab, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Al-Nassr will be hoping to secure back-to-back wins in the 2023-24 Saudi Pro League when they welcome Al Shabab to Al Awal Park at King Saud University for a matchday four encounter this Tuesday.

The hosts come into this match in 10th place in the league with three points after the first three matches, while the visitors are down in 14th with just two points in the early stages of the season.


Match preview

Al Nassr's Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates with teammates after winning the Arab Club Champions Cup final on August 12, 2023© Reuters

Al-Nassr got their season started positively, as they edged out Al Hilal for the Arab Club Champions Cup with a Cristiano Ronaldo goal in extra time despite playing most of the final 20 minutes of the match with nine men.

Thereafter, their form took a notable dip as they squandered an advantage to lose their opening league match of the campaign 2-1 to Al Ittifaq and went on to suffer a 2-0 loss in their first home game against Al Taawoun a week later.

Since then, though, the hosts seem to have refound their rhythm as they secured qualification for the AFC Champions League with a 4-2 win over Shabab Al-Ahli in the playoff round and battered Al Fateh 5-0 on the road last week.

Luis Castro's side won the last league encounter against this opponent 3-2 last season at this venue and are unbeaten in their last four meetings with two wins and two draws, dating back to November 2021.

Al-Nassr ended last season five points behind Al Ittihad and are already six points behind them this term, and the boss will know that his side cannot afford to drop any more points, or they will be faced with a huge mountain to climb early in the season.

Al-Shabab's Ahmed Abdou celebrates scoring their first goal on August 14, 2023© Reuters

Meanwhile, Al Shabab had another good season last term, posting their second consecutive fourth-placed finish, and they will be desperate to find a way to return to the AFC Champions League qualification places this season.

While under the guidance of Vicente Moreno, the hosts managed 56 points in their 30 matches last season (W17 D5 L8), though they ended the term poorly, suffering four defeats in their final five matches.

Unfortunately for new boss Marcel Keizer, that form seems to have continued this season as he is yet to record a win for his new club following 1-1 draws to Al Okhdood and Damak and a 3-1 loss to Al Wehda in his first three matches in charge.

They now have to go up against an Al-Nassr side that are starting to look very dangerous this season, but if they manage to pull off an upset here, it could be exactly what they need to get their season on track.

Al-Nassr Saudi Pro League form:

Al-Nassr form (all competitions):
  • W
  • W
  • L
  • L
  • W
  • W


Al Shabab Saudi Pro League form:

Al Shabab form (all competitions):
  • W
  • W
  • L
  • D
  • L
  • D

Al Nassr coach Luis Castro celebrates after winning the final on August 12, 2023© Reuters

Castro's only injury absentee for this match is goalkeeper David Ospina, who has been out since last season with an elbow injury and is unlikely to return in the near future.

Sadio Mane took his league tally to three goals for the season with a brace in the last match and is now part of a five-way tie in the Pro League's top scorer standings, joined by Ronaldo, who scored a hat-trick in the same match.

Fahad Al-Muwallad scored the crucial equaliser coming off the bench against Damac last week, and he will be hoping for a starting 11 place this time.

Mohammed Essa Harbush made an impact after coming on in that match to set up Al-Muwallad for the goal within two minutes of entering the field of play, and he will also be hoping to hear his name called in the starting lineup.


Al-Nassr possible starting lineup:
Al-Aqidi; Al Ghannam, Al-Fatil, Laporte, Konan; Al Khaibari, Brozovic, Ghareeb, Otavio, Mane; Ronaldo

Al Shabab possible starting lineup:
Kim; Al Yami, Santos, Al-Sharari, Harbush; Al-Ammar, Alqahtani, Cuellar, Banega, Al-Muwallad; Diallo


SM words green background

We say: Al-Nassr 3-1 Al Shabab

While the last few encounters between these sides have been fairly close, the hosts seem to have found their stride in the last couple of weeks while the visitors are still staggering out the blocks. We expect Al-Nassr to secure a comfortable win in this one.



For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.


Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting under 3.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Under 3.5:data


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Game History

How you voted: Al-Nassr vs Al Shabab

Al-Nassr
95.5%
Draw
0.0%
Al Shabab
4.5%
44
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rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Al-HilalAl-Hilal98102471725
2Al Ittihad98012281424
3Al-Nassr95402081219
4Al ShababAl Shabab9603126618
5Al Quadisiya9513117416
6Al Riyadh94231314-114
7Al Khaleej94141011-113
8Al-TaawounAl-Taawoun9333109112
9Al-AhliAl-Ahli9324129311
10Al RaedAl Raed93241313011
11Al Ettifaq9324812-411
12Al Orubah9315919-1010
13Al Okhdood92251113-28
14Damac92251316-38
15Al Kholood91441217-57
16Al Fayha9144717-107
17Al WahdaAl Wahda91351224-126
18Al Fateh9126716-95


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