Al Khaleej and Al Ahli, who are both on a run of one win and a draw in their last five matches and sit in mid-table with 7 points apiece, will look to turn their respective forms around after the international break when they clash on Friday at Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium, with kickoff slated for 15:45 GMT+1.
Key Highlights
Al Khaleej
Seven points out of a possible eighteen is a poor start for Al Khaleej. Of concern for the home side is that they have scored just three times in their opening six matches. The dearth of goals highlights a problem area for Al Khaleej: their attacking potency.
In this run, they have conceded seven times, which shows some solidity. This record is the best in the Saudi Pro League, shared by seven teams. However, combining their concession rate with their attacking phase abilities, their early form of the season has been poor, which has limited their ability to win points.
A positive note ahead of the break was when they beat Al Kholood 1-0 at home, keeping a clean sheet that ensured they took all three points. Al Khaleej were also dominant in the match, keeping 62% of the ball and having 16 shots, four of which were on target.
The focus will be to build on this promise when they face an underperforming Al Ahli on Friday, looking to make it back-to-back wins for the first time in the Saudi Pro League this season.
Al Ahli
Al Ahli started this season with significant hope; the ambition was to challenge Al Hilal and Al Nassr at the top end of the table. These hopes have been dashed by an underwhelming start, with just two victories in six outings, including three defeats and a draw.
The signing of Ivan Toney and the presence of Roberto Firmino and Riyad Mahrez in the squad were already meant to give Al Ahli significant firepower to drive their season. Although Toney is coming around and starting to fire in front of goal, Matthias Jaissle has not yet found the best formula to utilize his attacking talents to good effect.
Al Ahli have scored eight times, and conceded seven in the process; their inability to keep clean sheets has undermined their better attacking play.
Jaissle’s focus ahead of the trip to face Al Khaleej on Friday is to find a better balance in defense to ensure that the side is solid and compact without diminishing its budding attacking potency.
Ivan Toney will lead the line for Al Ahli as they look for consistency and firepower against Al Khaleej
Injury Report
Neither side has reported new injury concerns ahead of the Saudi Pro League’s resumption after the international break.
Team News
Abdulla Al Salem, the scorer of the sole goal in Al Khaleej’s 1-0 win against Al Kholood before the break, is expected to retain his spot as the home side looks to build some momentum with a big win over Al Ahli on Friday.
Mathias Jaissle is expected to persist with Ivan Toney leading the line alone now that the former Brentford striker has found his shooting range in the box, with the support of Gabriel Veiga, Mahrez, and al-Buraikan. However, expect Firmino to enter the fray to complement the attack if things do not go their way.
Prediction
Al Ahli have the firepower and the quality to dominate the clash against Al Khaleej on Friday and walk away with the three points on offer.
