The Saudi Pro League is back once again this weekend with a full slate of exciting fixtures for football fans to enjoy. The growth of Saudi football, and the influx of high profile stars, has created some controversy in recent months - but nobody can deny the impact they’re having. Today, we’ll be taking a look at what should be an intriguing clash between Al-Ittihad and Al-Raed.
Al-Ittihad Form GuideLast season, Al-Ittihad confirmed their status as the current best club in Saudi Arabian football as they won the Saudi Pro League. They led the way for long periods of the campaign and eventually, they came out on top. They finished in 1st place with 72 points, finishing five clear of their nearest rival, and they came home in style with four wins in their last five games.
Al-Ittihad have been enjoying some time away from league action recently in order to compete in the Club World Cup. They were able to see off Auckland City with relative ease in a 3-0 first round win, but in the second round against Al Ahly, they slipped to a 3-1 defeat.
Al-Raed Form GuideAl-Raed are really struggling to get a foothold in the top tier this season which is a shame for them, given their reputation as a club that has constantly been able to reinvent itself at the elite level. A relegation battle looms large but if they can start to click in the second half of the campaign, maybe they can make a real effort to fight back before things get out of hand.
Five shots in a game with only one being on target? Yeah, that just isn’t good enough from Al-Raed. Damac didn’t even play that well but when your opponent is making mistakes, just get out of the way. In the end, Al-Raed lost 1-0, but it probably should’ve been more.
Match PredictionAl-Ittihad are obviously going to be the favourites to bring home the win, but if Al-Raed can set themselves up in a strong and gritty way at the back, there’s every reason to believe they could spring an upset. In terms of a prediction, we’re going to shoot for under 2.5 goals scored.
