Second-half goals from Fabinho and Houssem Aouar sent Al Ittihad top of the 2024-25 Roshn Saudi League, two points clear of Al Hilal, with a 2-0 victory over bottom side Al Fateh at Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Sports City on Sunday.
Laurent Blanc’s men went into the final fixture of Matchweek 11 in the knowledge a win would secure the summit for the first time since the third round after their rivals Al Hilal had suffered a shock 3-2 defeat to Al Khaleej 24 hours earlier - their first in the competition in 18 months.
The build-up to the crucial encounter in Jeddah was marred by injury news, with Karim Benzema’s recovery timeline pushed by one week and Moussa Diaby suffering an ankle issue that will keep him out of contention for eight weeks. Diaby leads the 2024-25 RSL in assists, with 10.
After a near miss from Steven Bergwijn early on, Al Ittihad found the back of the net at the quarter-hour mark. The Al Khaleej defence was unable to deal with Abdulelah Hawsawi’s corner kick and the ball fell for Saleh Al Shehri, who found the top corner. However, the home side’s celebrations were cut short after a VAR review showed the striker was offside.
A goalless first half gave way to a clinical second by the two-time Asian champions when, before the hour, they rightfully took the lead. A well-worked passing move saw Bergwijn feed Mario Mitaj down the left and the Albanian squared for Fabinho who, arriving late in the box, side-footed into the bottom corner for his second goal of the season.
🇦🇱 Mario Mitaj was chosen by yourselves as the #ITTFAT man of the match 🏆#RoshnSaudiLeague pic.twitter.com/budMnx4nzU
— Roshn Saudi League (@SPL_EN) November 24, 2024
The victory was sealed in the final minute of regular time, when a quick counter-attack allowed left-back Muath Faqeehi to send a diagonal ball into the path of fellow substitute Abdulrahman Al Obud, who found Aouar at the near post. The Algerian’s emphatic finish was his sixth RSL goal since arriving from Olympique Lyon in the summer. It ensured Al Ittihad extended their winning streak in the league to seven matches, taking full advantage of Al Hilal’s defeat.
Next up for Al Ittihad is a tricky Saturday trip to Steven Gerrard’s Al Ettifaq, who defeated them 5-0 in their most recent clash, while Al Fateh will try to get their first win since Matchweek 2 when they host Al Riyadh on Thursday.
