The last time Aleksandar Mitrovic stepped out for Al Hilal in the Roshn Saudi League, life looked a lot different for the defending champions.
That was December, in the come-from-behind 3-2 victory against Al Raed in Matchweek 13, the title-holders’ closing encounter before the mid-season break.
While their league position remains the same, second in the table behind Al Ittihad, the outlook for Jorge Jesus’ side couldn’t be any more contrasting.
The gap to Al Ittihad has grown from two points to seven amid a slump in form that has seen Al Hilal, who went undefeated through the entirety of last season, win one of their past five RSL matches.
After their shock defeat midweek in Uzbekistan to Pakhtakor in the first leg of the AFC Champions League Elite last-16 tie, Al Hilal have now lost three of their past four in all competitions. Indeed, it made it back-to-back defeats for the club for first time in almost three years.
Such a dip in form is almost anathema to the hugely decorated Saudi side, who have been conditioned to expect nothing other than success.
It’s testament to their quality that, even given their current malaise, Al Hilal remain very much within touching distance of top spot. For that, they have been helped by Al Ittihad unexpectedly dropping points of their own across the past three matchweeks.
The same goes for Al Nassr, who like their great Riyadh rivals, have lost two of their past three. So, in some ways, this is almost the best-case scenario for Al Hilal.
Most certainly, they could have found themselves not only further adrift of the summit, but in another reality, might have found themselves outside the top three completely (Al Qadsiah, in third, have been in superb form).
However, Al Hilal remain well in contention, although they do need a circuit-breaker to turn around their fortunes around. And that could come in the return of their Serbian superstar.
Mitrovic, 30, has been sidelined with a niggling hamstring injury since picking it up in the King’s Cup defeat to Al Ittihad in early January – it is one that has taken far longer to heal that initially expected.
Three months feels an incredibly long time, especially in a thrilling and twisting RSL title race. Last week, Al Hilal manager Jesus described Mitrovic’s continued absence as “concerning”.
At the end of February, Al Hilal sent their lead striker to Serbia for a further and final assessment to ensure his hamstring had fully recovered before they reconsidered him for selection. Having nursed Mitrovic back to fitness, the last thing they need is for his body to break down again.
At the close of Matchweek 13 before the RSL’s winter pause, Mitrovic had already netted 12 times this season at a rate of almost a goal every game, despite going scoreless in his last two outings. He sat perched top of the 2024-25 RSL scoring charts.
As a frontman, he is almost as close you can get to a guaranteed goal every game; going back to his debut season last term, Mitrovic has 40 goals in 41 RSL appearances.
While logic dictates that it will take time to regain his form after close to three months on the sidelines, recent history suggests that might not actually be the case. Mitrovic also missed a month of action at the tail end of last season, at a seemingly crucial time in the club’s title challenge.
But, not only were Al Hilal able to continue without even a ripple of trouble, when Mitrovic returned he did so with a bang, scoring five goals in four games to finish off the season in style. It’s that same free-scoring Mitrovic that Al Hilal need when he returns.
While Marcos Leonardo has more than stepped up to the plate, with 13 goals of his own in the Serbian’s absence to take his tally to 16 for the campaign, there’s no doubt Al Hilal are a more fearsome prospect with Mitrovic at the point of the attack.
But what the injury gods give on one hand, they take away with the other, with news this week that more Al Hilal stars are sidelined - also with hamstring injuries.
Full-back Joao Cancelo, like Leonardo a revelation in his debut campaign in the Kingdom, is one of those that now faces up to two months on the sidelines.
The 30-year-old Portuguese international, a treble winner with England’s Manchester City, has been a standout for his new club, with five assists already to his name. Although, in exciting youngster Moteb Al Harbi, Al Hilal appear to have a ready-made replacement waiting in the wings.
Further, defender Ali Al Bulaihi is another to succumb to the hamstring curse, with Al Hilal citing his recovery period to be four-to-six weeks.
Meanwhile, integral midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Mitrovic’s international teammate, also went off last week with a soft-tissue injury. Thankfully for Al Hilal, his prognosis appears better than that of Cancelo and Al Bulaihi.
It’s certainly been one of those seasons for the RSL champions. But at least Mitrovic’s comeback, believed potentially to be in Friday night’s Matchweek 24 trip to Al Fayha, is some good news at a time when Al Hilal need all the positivity they can get.
Is the mighty marksman, surely chomping at the bit to get back into the thick of the action, the spark to reignite their title defence?
