Ronaldo strike wins thrilling derby for Al Nassr, Al Hilal march on

Al Hilal 3-0 Al Fayha

Roshn Saudi League defending champions Al Hilal marked their return to Kingdom Arena with an emphatic 3-0 victory over Al Fayha on Friday evening.

Al Fayha were the only team last season to take points from Al Hilal at their home, drawing 1-1 at King Fahd International Stadium, but with a much-changed side and a new manager in charge at the Al Majma’ah club, matters were different this time around.

Goals from Marcos Leonardo and Salem Al Dawsari either side of half-time put Al Hilal in the driving seat before youngster Mohammed Al Qahtani came off the bench to seal the victory for the league leaders.

It took only five minutes for the hosts to edge ahead after Al Dawsari fed the marauding Renan Lodi down the left and the former Sevilla left-back sent a perfect drilled cross towards his fellow Brazilian Leonardo - the summer signing swept home from seven yards out for his first RSL goal.

The 21-year-old Santos youth produce could have doubled his tally before the half-hour mark, rising highest to head Sergej Milinkovic-Savic’s cross from the left, only to watch as his effort bounce back off the upright.

Captain Al Dawsari doubled Al Hilal’s lead in the 65th minute, heading past goalkeeper Abdulraouf Al Duqayl after Joao Cancelo had exchanged a one-two with Milinkovic-Savic before crossing for the Saudi international to bag his team’s second.

The game was then put to bed with nine minutes left on the clock. Al Fayha threw everything forward in an attempt to reduce the deficit, but left themselves exposed to counter attacks, one of which Malcom led with explosive pace, before setting up Mohammed Al Qahtani. The Saudi youngster controlled well and drilled his shot into the bottom corner for 3-0.

Jorge Jesus’ men become the first side to cross the 20-goal mark this campaign and also extend their unbeaten run in the competition to 43 matches, dating back to the 2022-23 season. Meanwhile, Al Fayha remain on one win from their seven outings this term.

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Al Khaleej 0-3 Al Ahli

Al Ahli got back to winning ways after returning from the East Coast with a comfortable 3-0 win over 10-man Al Khaleej, arresting a run of two consecutive losses that had seen them slip into the bottom half of the RSL table.

A closely contested first half gave way to a one-sided second period, with a red card for the hosts marking the turning point in the match. Earlier, Al Ahli’s best chance of the opening half came deep in added time when Franck Kessie struck the ball on the half-volley, but his finish flew just wide.

Al Khaleej were reduced to 10 men eight minutes into the second after midfielder Khalid Al Sumairi received a straight red card following a VAR check after a reckless challenge from behind on Al Ahli substitute Roberto Firmino.

The visitors took advantage instantly, with the resulting free-kick sent into the box by Riyad Mahrez for Ivan Toney, leaving the Englishman to head across the mouth of goal for Firas Al Buraikan, who powered in a header for his first goal of the RSL season.

Toney then turned from provider to scorer in the 70th minute. The former Brentford ace, recruited at the conclusion of the summer transfer window, got on the end of a deflected Kessie pass and fired on the half-volley, beating goalkeeper Ibrahim Sehic for his side’s second of the night - and his third of the season.

For the third, Toney was once more involved in the build-up. Gabri Veiga’s delivery into the Al Khaleej penalty area was met on the head by the England international, although he was denied by a fine Sehic save. However, the ball fell into the path of Merih Demiral, and the Turkish centre-back squeezed it home from close range to round off the 3-0 victory.

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Al Shabab v Al Nassr

Stefano Pioli’s perfect start to life in the RSL continued late on Friday as the Italian tactician recorded a fourth consecutive win at the helm of Al Nassr in a dramatic derby encounter at Al Shabab Club Stadium.

The day's late kick-off looked headed for a routine 1-0 Al Nassr win with added time of the second half approaching, but multiple late twists ensued in the dying embers as hosts Al Shabab emerged second best at the final whistle.

Spanish international defender Aymeric Laporte broke the deadlock after 68 minutes in a closely fought Riyadh derby, hitting an acrobatic strike into the roof of the net to open the scoring for Al Nassr.

Yet, as the clock struck the 90-minute mark, youngster Nawaf Al Saadi showed his quality. Coming off the bench, the former Abha winger beat his marker down the left and drilled a cross that was inadvertently sent into the back of Al Nassr net by Ali Al Hassan to draw the game level.

There was still time, though, for another swing in momentum. Seven minutes into added time, Abdulrahman Ghareeb made his way into Al Shabab penalty area before being brought down by home defender Robert Renan. Cristiano Ronaldo, last term's golden boot winner, stepped up to convert confidently for his sixth goal of the RSL season.

However, just as Al Nassr thought they had won the derby, the last attack for the hosts resulted in another penalty. Al Nassr centre-back Mohamed Simakan misjudged his tackle on Nader Al Sharari, prompting the referee to point to the spot and issue the 24-year-old Frenchman a second booking after a VAR review.

Wearing the captain’s armband and facing the club with which he won the RSL top-scorer award twice, Moroccan striker Abderrazak Hamdallah’s moment had come. And, while he was able to send goalkeeper Bento the wrong way, the Al Shabab skipper watched the ball come back off the upright with what was the final piece of action in a thrilling encounter.

The win means Ronaldo and Co remain one of two unbeaten sides in the competition and advance back to within four points of leaders Al Hilal. Al Shabab, meanwhile, remain fourth but will need to arrest their run of two defeats.