Fresh off the back of claiming contrasting results in the King's Cup, Al Fayha and Al Ittihad return to action in the Professional League when they go head-to-head on Saturday.
Nadi Al-Sha'ab, who journey to the King Abdullah Sport City Stadium unbeaten in each of their last seven games against the home side, will be looking to extend this solid run and open up a five-point lead at the top of the table.
Match preview
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Al Fayha were denied a dream start to the new year as they suffered a quarter-final exit from the King's Cup courtesy of a 2-1 defeat against Al-Shabab at the Al Shabab FC Stadium last Monday.
Early strikes from Daniel Podence and Abderrazak Hamdallah put Al-Shabab in a comfortable two-goal lead heading into half time, and after Mokher Al-Rashidi halved the deficit in the 88th minute, the home side kept their cool to see off a late comeback scare and book their spot in the semi-finals.
Before that, Al Fayha were a run of two back-to-back friendly victories, seeing off Kuwait outfit Al-Salmiya 2-1 on December 19 before wrapping up their schedule for 2024 with a 1-0 win over Al-Wehda courtesy of a first-half goal from Zambian international Fashion Sakala.
Monday's cup defeat was in keeping with their struggles in the Professional League, where Pedro Emanuel's men have failed to win any of their most recent eight games, losing four and claiming four draws since the start of October.
Al Fayha have managed just one league victory this season, which came on September 29, when they saw off Al-Riyadh 2-0 on home turf thanks to goals from Sakala and 30-year-old Renzo Lopez.
Having secured a ninth-placed finish last season, the Mills of Sudair have endured turbulent campaign so far as they sit bottom but one in the league standings with eight points from 13 games, just two points above last-placed Al-Fateh.
Elsewhere, Al Ittihad had to dig deep in their King's Cup semi-final clash against Al-Hilal on Tuesday as they defeated the Blue Waves on penalties after a 2-2 stalemate in 120 minutes at Kingdom Arena.
Two goals from Karim Benzema, including a 114th-minute equaliser, helped Nadi Al-Sha'ab take the game to penalties after Salem Al-Dawsari and Marcos Leonardo scored to put Al-Hilal one up, before they secured a 3-1 win in the shootout.
With that result, Al Ittihad have now won each of their last 12 matches across all competitions, scoring 28 goals and keeping seven clean sheets since a 3-1 defeat against Al-Hilal in their league clash on September 21.
Nine of those 12 victories have come in the Professional League, where Laurent Blanc's men have picked up an impressive 36 points from a possible 39 to sit top of the table, just two points above Al-Hilal in second-place.
Al Ittihad will be backing themselves to keep the juggernaut rolling this weekend as they go up against an opposing side whom they are unbeaten against in each of the last seven meetings between the teams, claiming six wins and one draw since a 1-0 loss in April 2022.
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Team News
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Al-Fayha remain without the services of Nigerian attacker Henry Onyekuru, who continues his long road to full fitness after picking up a severe injury in the game against Al-Okhdood last April.
Rakan Kaabi was forced off injured midway through the first half against Al-Shabab last time out and the 22-year-old midfielder is a doubt for this weekend's matchup, meaning Mansour Al Bishi will push for his fourth start in the league.
Meanwhile, Al Ittihad will be without Ahmed Sharahili, who continues his lengthy spell on the sidelines after suffering a cruciate ligament tear back in August.
Abdulelah Al-Amri has missed each of the last two matches since sustaining a muscle injury against Al-Nassr in December and the 27-year-old defender is also out of contention for the visitors.
Moussa Diaby is set to sit out his fifth straight game while 31-year-old forward Saleh Al-Shehri is a doubt after missing the midweek cup tie against Al-Hilal through a muscle injury.
With his brace on Tuesday, Benzema now has 15 goal contributions in 12 matches across all competitions this season and the 37-year-old will certainly be one to keep an eye on.
Al Fayha possible starting lineup:
Mosquera; Faris, Smalling, Khaibary, Baqawi; Al Bishi, Shukurov; Harthi, Pozuelo, Al-Kaabi; Sakala
Al Ittihad possible starting lineup:
Rajkovic; Kadesh, Pereira, Al-Mousa; Mitaj, Fabinho, Kante, Shanqeeti; Aouar; Bergwijn, Benzema
We say: Al Fayha 0-3 Al Ittihad
Al Fayha and Al Ittihad have had a contrasting campaign so far, with the Mills of Sudair languishing at the wrong end of the table after 13 matches. Blanc's men are currently firing on all cylinders, and given the gulf in quality and depth between the two teams, we are backing them to come away with a comfortable victory.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joshua Ojele
