Al-Hilal vs Al-Ettifaq

Record-time Saudi Pro League champions Al-Hilal welcome Steven Gerrard’s Al-Ettifaq at the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium.

While waiting to see box-office signing Neymar in action, Al-Hilal turned to former Fulham talisman Aleksandar Mitrovic to open the scoring in a thumping 4-0 away win over Al-Raed last week. An underwhelming 1-1 home draw against Al Feiha on matchday two, sandwiched by a pair of multi-goal margin wins on the road, highlights the significance of this fixture. Widely considered the leading candidates to lift a record-extending 16th Saudi Pro League title after surrendering the crown to Al-Ittihad last season, Al-Hilal come into proceedings as odds-on favorites, having racked up nine wins and a draw in ten league meetings with Al-Ettifaq since a 2-1 loss in March 2018. But they’ll have to build on that run without marquee midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, who picked up a red card against Al-Raed last time out.

Meanwhile, Gerrard’s touchline debut in the Saudi Pro League produced a breathtaking contest as his Al-Ettifaq side came from a 1-0 halftime deficit to beat Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr on day one. Goals on either side of halftime inspired them to a 2-0 win at Al Hazem in the follow-up before a 1-1 home draw against Al Khaleej last time out halted their momentum. Despite entering this round as underdogs, Al-Etiffaq can call upon ex-Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson and former Lyon striker Moussa Dembele to help them beat the odds and snap an underwhelming five-game losing league streak away to Al-Hilal. However, it’s worth noting they’ve conceded 3+ goals on their last three top-flight visits to the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium.