On Thursday evening, the top two teams from the Saudi Pro League will face off in the 2024 Riyadh Season Cup final.
The mid-season event was supposed to feature Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi’s ‘Last Dance’, however the former was missing as Al Nassr defeated Messi’s Inter Miami 6-0. Last Monday, the MLS side lost 4-3 to Saudi Pro League leaders Al Hilal. Thus, Thursday’s encounter between the two Saudi teams will determine the winner of the mid-season competition.
Al Hilal presently leads Al Nassr in the 2023/24 Saudi Pro League, and both clubs are in excellent form going into this match. Ronaldo’s team was defeated away from home in their first meeting of the season, with Serbians Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Aleksandar Mitrovic scoring in a 3-0 win.
Here’s a 90-minute preview of Thursday’s Riyadh Season Cup match.
Match Time:
Kingdom Arena Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Date: Thursday, 8 February
Kickoff time is 18:00 GMT / 13:00 ET / 10:00 PT.
Al Nassr against Al Hilal H2H Records (Last Five Games)
Al Nassr: one win.
Al Hilal: three wins.
Draws: 1 Current form (for all competitions).
Al Nassr and Al Hilal both use WWWWW.
How to watch Al Nassr vs. Al Hilal on TV and live stream by country
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DAZN |
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Cristiano Ronaldo missed the match against Messi due to a calf injury, but the all-time great is expected to return to action on Thursday after recovering from his knock.
If Ronaldo returns to the starting lineup, young striker Mohammed Maran will leave the team.
Anderson Talisca, Otavio, Marcelo Brozovic, and Aymeric Laporte are among the high-profile players expected to appear for Luis Castro’s team.
Al Nassr expected lineup vs Al Hilal.
Al Nassr’s anticipated lineup against Al Hilal (4-2-3-1): Ospina; Boushal, Alamri, Laporte, Telles; Al Sulaiheem, Brozovic; Talisca, Otavio, Al Aliwa; Ronaldo.
Jorge Jesus could be helped by returning AFCON talents Yassine Bounou and Kalidou Koulibaly. Since Al Hilal’s 4-3 victory over Inter Miami on Monday, Morocco and Senegal have departed the competition.
With Bono’s comeback, Habib Al-Wutaian would be dropped from the starting lineup. Mohammed Al Owais, the former world number one, is still struggling with a back problem.
Al Hilal will also benefit from the return of nine Saudi Arabian stars from the AFC Asian Cup, however Brazilian sensation Neymar is still out with a long-term knee injury.
Al Hilal expected lineup vs Al Nassr.
Al Hilal’s probable lineup against Al Nassr (4-2-3-1): Bono, Al Burayk, Al Dawsari, Koulibaly, Al Shahrani; Neves, Milinkovic-Savic; Michael, Malcom, Al-Qahtani; Mitrovic.
Al Nassr vs. Al Hilal score prediction
This may be a friendly, but Thursday’s Riyadh derby will undoubtedly be brutally contested, with both teams buoyed by the return of several international stars.
Ronaldo’s return is critical for Al Nassr, who are riding high after defeating Inter Miami 6-0. Meanwhile, Al Hilal will face DC United before Thursday’s encounter and may be a little tired.
The Saudi Pro League leaders finally won comfortably in the first league encounter of the season, but this time around, the 38-year-old superstar is expected to inspire Al Nassr to victory.
Prediction: Al Nassr 3–2 Al Hilal
Al Hilal will also benefit from the return of nine Saudi Arabian stars from the AFC Asian Cup, however Brazilian sensation Neymar is still out with a long-term knee injury.
