In the Saudi Super Cup final on Thursday, Al Hilal SFC defeated Al Ittihad 4-1 to maintain their four-title lead for the season. Neymar, who is sidelined, saw his teammates triumph easily.
With seven games left, the Riyadh behemoth is 12 points ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr in the Saudi Pro League, thus this trophy, which was raised in Abu Dhabi’s Mohammed Bin Zayed Stadium, will probably not the last one they win this season.
Al Hilal SFC, who is currently in the Saudi King’s Cup and Asian Champions League Semifinals, increased their winning run to 34 games in a row across all competitions, setting a new record for elite clubs.
Al Hilal was defeated by two goals from Brazilian winger Malcom three days after beating Al Nassr in the semifinal, when Ronaldo was sent off for elbowing Ali Al-Bulaihi. With late goals, Salem Al-Dawsari and Nasser Al-Dawsari completed the victory.
Al Hilal Saudi Pro League Standing
“It was a difficult game and I am very happy to score two goals,” Malcom told Saudi television. “We are also happy to collect our first title of the season but we are chasing more trophies.”
The most common sentence you’ll ever read:#AlHilal celebration after the final whistle pic.twitter.com/gf8Qhs5zOL
— AlHilal Saudi Club (@Alhilal_EN) April 12, 2024
Karim Benzema, an attacker for Ittihad who was acquired from Real Madrid in the summer, failed to find the goal, but teammate Abderrazak Hamdallah made up for a missed penalty by scoring.
However, the Moroccan attacker was embroiled in a contentious incident near the conclusion of the game when he seemed to argue with a spectator who was watching from near the pitch. Security guards escorted the supporter out of sight.
The league champion and King’s Cup winner played in a single game to determine the Super Cup champion; in 2023, the runners-up from both tournaments were included. It was relocated to Abu Dhabi as well.
In an attempt to win a record-tying fifth continental championship, Hilal will play Al-Ain in the opening leg of the Asian Champions League semifinals on Tuesday when they return to the United Arab Emirates.
The club’s possibly historic season follows approximately €350 million ($380 million) in player acquisitions, mostly as a result of Neymar’s preseason arrival, since the Public Investment Fund, owned by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, took control of the team.
Information’s from The Associated Press was used in this story.
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