"Al-Ittihad returned to winning ways in the Saudi Pro League with a 2-1 win against Al-Riyadh at the Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Sports City Stadium. Karim Benzema scored for the first time in the league since his hat-trick in the opening game of the 2025-26 season before Mohammed Al Khaibari's own-goal doubled their advantage, but Moussa Diaby's red card led to a frantic finish after Mamadou Sylla's 77th-minute strike."
"Data Debrief: Diaby delight for Al-Ittihad Al-Ittihad will be disappointed not to win with a clean sheet, but it was an impressive performance nonetheless. They produced 1.55 expected goals (xG) from 15 shots to Al-Riyadh's 0.82 from seven attempts. Diaby's red card was Al-Ittihad's third of the season, but the Frenchman made another vital contribution in the final third of the pitch for his side."
Al-Ittihad secured a 2-1 home victory over Al-Riyadh through Karim Benzema's header and a Mohammed Al Khaibari own-goal. Moussa Diaby provided the cross for Benzema's opener and later received a red card after striking an opponent, which shifted momentum. Mamadou Sylla pulled one back for Al-Riyadh in the 77th minute following saves from Predrag Rajkovic to deny other attempts. Al-Ittihad produced 1.55 expected goals from 15 shots versus Al-Riyadh's 0.82 from seven. Despite playing with ten men late on, Al-Ittihad continued to press and held on for the win.
Read at Soccer News
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]