Al Ittihad will be looking to move to the top of the Saudi Professional League standings when they play host to Al-Ahli on Friday evening.
Matthias Jaissle's men journey to the King Abdullah Sports City without a win in any of their last four games against the home side and will be looking to end this dry spell this weekend.
Match preview
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Al Ittihad were made to rue their lack of sting in front of goal as they were held to a goalless draw by Al Fayha when the sides squared off at the King Fahd International Stadium last Friday.
Despite seeing over 65% of the ball possession and being in the ascendancy for most of the game, Nuno Espirito Santo's men failed to truly threaten the hosts' goal before settling for a share of the spoils.
This was a second consecutive game in which Al Ittihad have struggled in attack as they scraped a penalty-shootout victory over Al Kholood in their King's Cup last-32 clash on September 26 after a 1-1 draw in 120 minutes.
This dry spell has coincided with the absence of star striker Karim Benzema, who has missed the Tigers' last three matches, having registered nine goal involvements in his opening 10 matches since his summer arrival.
However, Al Ittihad have now gone unbeaten in each of their last five matches, picking up one draw and four wins, including a comfortable 3-0 victory over AGMK in their AFC Champions League Group C opener on September 18.
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Like this weekend's hosts, Al-Ahli failed to convert any of their clear-cut chances last Saturday as they played out a goalless draw with Al Ettifaq at the Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium.
Prior to that, Jaissle's side booked their spot in the round of 16 of the King's Cup on September 26, when they picked up a narrow 3-2 victory over Al Ain courtesy of a 39th-minute strike from Sumaihan Al-Nabit and Firas Al-Buraikan's first-half brace.
With Saturday's result, Al-Ahli have now managed just one win in their last four league matches, having stormed into the new campaign with four victories in their opening four outings.
Despite this drop-off in form, the Royal are currently sixth in the Professional League standings with 16 points from a possible 24, three points and four places behind Al Ittihad.
However, Al-Ahli head into the weekend without a win in any of their last four games against Espirito Santo's men, losing three and picking up one draw since a 2-1 victory in August 2020.
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Team News
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Al Ittihad remain without the services of Egyptian defender Ahmed Hegazy and 32-year-old goalkeeper Abdullah Al-Jadani, who have both been sidelined through cruciate ligament injuries.
Ahmed Bamasud was forced off injured shortly after the hour mark against Al Fayha last time out and the 27-year-old full-back is a doubt for Espirito Santo's men.
Benzema has has been sidelined since picking up an injury in the 3-0 victory over Al Okhdood on September 14 and the former Real Madrid striker is also a doubt for this weekend's tie.
Meanwhile, Al-Ahli will take to the pitch without experienced midfielder Abdullah Otayf, who has been out of action since late August after suffering a cruciate ligament rupture.
Despite last weekend's disappointing result, we expect Jaissle to name a similar side on Friday, with the former Premier League trio of Riyad Mahrez, Roberto Firmino and Allan Saint-Maximin forming the front three once again.
Gabri Veiga and Franck Kessie should retain their roles in the centre of the park, while we expect a centre-back pairing of Roger Ibanez and Abdulbaset Al-Hindi shielding Edouard Mendy between the sticks.
Al Ittihad possible starting lineup:
Grohe; Felipe, Kadesh, Hawsawi; Al-Olayan, Coronado, Fabinho, Kante, Shangeeti; Romarinho, Hamdallah
Al-Ahli possible starting lineup:
Mendy; Majrashi, Ibanez, Al-Hindi, Balobaid; Veiga, Al-Majhad, Kessie; Mahrez, Firmino, Saint-Maximin
We say: Al Ittihad 3-1 Al-Ahli
Having both dropped points last time out, Al Ittihad and Al-Ahli will head into the weekend looking to return to winning ways. Jaissle's men have lost their last two away games, and despite their firepower at the attacking end of the pitch, we fancy the hosts to extend their recent dominance in this fixture.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Joshua Ojele
