Mitrovic v Benzema: who will fire club to Clasico glory?

Aleksandar Mitrovic struck another double, his third successive brace to open the 2024-25 Roshn Saudi League as if his supreme Saudi Arabian top-flight account had never closed.

Two at Al Okhdood, two more against Damac, another two in the derby with Al Riyadh. A sensation last season, it felt like the Serbia striker had never been away.

Mitrovic, then of Premier League club Fulham, was a protracted signing for Al Hilal in August last year, his move stretched across the second month of the window. Yet he proved worth the wait. The forward struck 28 times in 28 RSL appearances in his debut campaign in the Kingdom, a crucial component in catapulting the Riyadh club to a ruthless and record-breaking title success.

Ask Mitrovic for his highlight goal in a highlight-reel first 10 months in Saudi, and he would most probably choose the ferocious volley against Al Ittihad in Matchweek 5. It formed a third of a hat-trick at King Abdullah Sports City; allied with a close-range finish and a converted penalty, it helped Al Hilal claw back from 3-1 down to eventually prevail 4-3.

The would-be champions had sucker-punched the incumbent title-holders, and on their own patch.

From there, and while Al Hilal prospered, Al Ittihad never really recovered. Manager Nuno Espirito Santo was soon gone and, as their capital counterparts rode the crest of a rising wave, so too their chances of retaining the RSL trophy.

Karim Benzema was also on the scoreline that remarkable night last September – his superb, flicked finish put Al Ittihad 2-1 up – but, where Mitrovic continued to plunder, the Frenchman plateaued, injury issues taking their toll. In the end, the 2022 Ballon d’Or winner finished the season with nine goals in 21 RSL matches as Al Ittihad came home fifth.

Twelve months have passed since that Clasico, a lot of water under the bridge, with the latest installment of Saudi’s greatest rivalry taking place on Saturday night in Riyadh. A year on, Benzema and Co will want to banish the memory of last season once and for all.

The Al Ittihad captain has returned this season as if he has a point to prove: with four goals in three matches, he is already almost halfway to his 2023-24 haul. It has been the manner of his finishes, too, that offers much optimism. The back-heel against Al Taawoun in Matchweek 2; the opener in the 7-1 evisceration of Al Wehda last time out. Three rounds in, and Benzema has two Goal of the Week awards.

He has had, by his own admission, a profound effect on 2024-25 Al Ittihad, as well. Speaking to the SPL last month, Benzema said tellingly: “This season is really a new page for the club. I did everything I could to strengthen the team, to make it better and stronger, and I'm confident. Now we have to fight together to try and win trophies.”

His input certainly seems clear. Compatriots Laurent Blanc and Moussa Diaby have arrived, as manager and impactful winger respectively, while fellow Olympique Lyon graduate Houssem Aouar has also proven an instant hit. With Steven Bergwijn arriving late in the window, the sense is Benzema, now 36 but still with undoubted ability, has the framework around him to flourish.

Patently, that is what Mitrovic has been doing for Al Hilal since his arrival. Yet, having added Marcos Leonardo and Joao Cancelo added this month to an already formidable attack, and with Neymar to come back in, Al Hilal have ensured Mitrovic will be supplied the fuel to continue to fire.

It’s what makes Saturday’s Clasico at Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium all the more intriguing. Competing frontman, both in form and harbingers of hope for this campaign at their rival clubs, could set alight a match than means so much.

And with it, the title race. Even though it's only four matchweeks into 2024-25, Al Ittihad and Al Hilal hold the top two positions, both boasting 100 percent records and the competition’s two league marksman. Whoever comes out on top in that particular duel, then, may well hold the key to success on the night.

Mitrovic versus Benzema is simply another subplot to a fixture that typically captures the imagination like no other. Prevail, and dreams of that season-ending championship - a second for the Serbian or a first for a Frenchman who has openly targeted it - feel infinitely more realistic.