RSL top five win, Al Ahli bounce back into upper half

Matchweek 10 of the Roshn Saudi League saw the top five sides - Al Hilal, Al Ittihad, Al Nassr, Al Shabab and Al Qadsiah - all come away with victories to cement their status as the leading pack of the 2024-25 season.

Meanwhile, Al Ahli took advantage of Al Riyadh’s home defeat at Al Nassr to defeat Al Raed and climb back into the top half - they eventually come in at eighth - while Al Khaleej continued their impressive run with a third consecutive win to move to sixth in the table going into the FIFA international break.

Following their Eastern Derby victory against Al Ettifaq in Derby Week, Al Qadsiah’s momentum continued with a third straight triumph, this time a 2-0 win at the expense of Al Fayha. Turki Al Ammar opened Matchweek 10’s scoring inside four minutes and a second-half Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang penalty sealed the three points in Al Majma’ah.

Everything the Al Khobar side could do, Al Shabab showed they could match, with their own three-match winning streak achieved thanks to an Abderrazak Hamdallah brace to see off Al Kholood 2-0. The Moroccan forward moved within 11 goals of the RSL’s all-time top scorer Omar Al Somah, reaching 133 RSL career goals and four for the current campaign.

The last of Thursday’s three matches was also a 2-0 win, with Al Ittihad following up their Sea Derby success last time out with a six consecutive victory - continuing the league’s longest winning run this season. In Karim Benzema’s absence, understudy Saleh Al Shehri stepped up, scoring a goal and winning a penalty that was converted by Steven Bergwijn for the Dutchman’s second goal of his debut RSL campaign.

On Friday, the action got under way at Kingdom Arena where Steven Gerrard’s Al Ettifaq held on for 47 minutes before being broken by Aleksandar Mitrovic’s 11th goal of the season just before the break. RSL champions Al Hilal put the game to bed thanks to Malcom’s well-taken goal in the 81st minute.

An action-packed injury-time saw Al Hilal loanee Abdullah Radif sent-off, Al Ettifaq awarded a penalty that was converted by Vitinho, and another one for Al Hilal bagged by substitute Mohammed Al Qahtani to seal a 3-1 victory. With it, the title-holders usurped Al Ittihad to reclaim their place at the top of the table.

Reeling from the Sea Derby defeat, Al Ahli needed a win to regain their balance and got it at home against Al Raed. Riyad Mahrez set up Gabri Veiga for the opener 10 minutes into the second half, and the points were sealed in added time thanks to Ali Al Asmari. The Al Ahli midfielder collected a through pass from substitute Ivan Toney and slotted home to make it 2-0.

A first win in three games sees the side that finished last season in third place return to the top half of the table, entering the November international break in eighth. It also lifts the pressure off manager Matthias Jaissle.

A second Riyadh derby in a row for Cristiano Ronaldo and Co saw them edge out Al Riyadh 1-0 in a hard-fought game on Friday night. A well-worked move involving Sultan Al Ghannam and Otavio fed Abdulrahman Ghareeb inside the hosts' penalty area and the winger pulled the ball back for Sadio Mane, who hammered into the back of the net for the game's only goal.

Al Khaleej’s unlikely march into the top six maintained on Saturday with a third win on the trot. Just like he did the previous week against Al Raed, veteran forward Abdullah Al Salem bagged a brace to inspire a 2-1 victory against bottom-of-the-table Al Fateh. The Al Khaleej homegrown striker got his goals either side of the break, while long-term absentee Mourad Batna marked his return from injury with a consolation deep in added-time.

The King Abdulaziz Sports City in Mecca was home to the pick of the games, though, with five goals scored between Al Wehda and Damac - with the visitors eventually prevailing 3-2. The Khamis Mushait side emerged victorious thanks to Francois Kamano’s brace. The Guinean forward, a summer signing from rivals Abha, had scored only twice last season, but already bettered that tally on Saturday, reaching three goals for 2024-25.

Talisman Georges-Kevin N’Koudou got Damac’s third after Bandar Darwish had halved the deficit for second-from-bottom Al Wehda. Abdulaziz Noor’s late strike proved merely consolation for the Meccans as Damac climbed to 10th, the same position they occupied at the end of the 2023-24 season.

Rounding-up the pre-break games, Al Taawoun recorded a hard-fought 1-0 win at home against Al Okhdood. The clash in Buraidah looked destined to end goalless before Gambian forward Musa Barrow continued his habit of finding the back of the net with a 93rd-minute winner - his fourth goal in five RSL matches - taking him level with Ronaldo on six goals for the campaign.

With Matchweek 10 complete, the RSL contingent rest for two weeks before the wheels resume turning on November 22 with Al Fayha hosting Al Ahli in the first game back. Nearly a third of the season done, the title race, relegation battle and race for continental football are all starting to take shape.