Al-Hilal Maintain Perfect Start as Al-Ahli Cruise to Five-Goal Win

Al-Hilal maintained their perfect start to the Saudi Pro League season with a 2-0 victory away to Al-Shabab, moving to the top of the table with 15 points from their opening five matches.

Simone Inzaghi’s side were not as dominant as they had been in their previous game, when they defeated Al-Ahli 3-0 at Kingdom Arena, but they did enough to secure another three points.

Ollie Watkins, who scored on his Al-Hilal debut against Al-Ahli, started his first full match for the club but struggled to make an impact. Al-Hilal created several opportunities and finished with an expected goals figure of 3.54, yet they needed until the second half to break the deadlock.

Sergej Milinkovic-Savic opened the scoring in the 53rd minute. Ruben Neves sent a clever ball over the Al-Shabab defence toward Mohammed Mahzari, who delivered a low cross into the area. Milinkovic-Savic was left unmarked near the six-yard box and calmly finished.

Gabriel Martinelli made his Al-Hilal debut when he came on in the 68th minute. The Brazilian nearly scored immediately, but goalkeeper Mory Diaw reacted quickly to keep out his first touch.

Al-Hilal had chances to extend their lead before eventually securing the result. Milinkovic-Savic and Mohammed Kanno combined brilliantly in the first half, but Kanno’s powerful effort struck the outside of the post. Later, Kalidou Koulibaly missed a close-range header after another effort from Milinkovic-Savic had hit the woodwork.

The visitors finally added a second goal in the 87th minute. Crysencio Summerville’s curling shot from the edge of the penalty area struck the hand of Mohammed Al-Thani, prompting the referee to award a penalty. Neves took responsibility and scored despite Diaw getting a hand to the attempt.

Al-Shabab’s main attacking threat came from Yannick Carrasco, although the hosts rarely seriously troubled Yassine Bounou.

In Jeddah, Al-Ahli responded strongly to the departure of sporting director Rui Pedro Braz by defeating Al-Riyadh 5-0.

Leandro Antunes threatened early for the visitors, forcing a save from Edouard Mendy before hitting the crossbar. Al-Ahli then took control, with Saad Balobaid playing a key role in all three of their first-half goals.

Ivan Toney converted a 16th-minute penalty after Balobaid was fouled in the box. Eduard Spertsyan doubled the lead before half-time, while Francisco Trincao added a third.

Toney scored again after the break with a Panenka penalty, while Naif Masoud completed the scoring in the 87th minute.

Elsewhere, Al-Ettifaq defeated Abha 1-0 through an own goal involving goalkeeper Donovan Leon after Mousa Dembele’s header struck the post.

Saturday’s schedule features a major clash in Jeddah, with Al-Ittihad set to host Al-Nassr at 9 p.m.