The 2023-24 Saudi Pro League campaign is about to start this weekend, and it’s going to be fun compared to recent years considering the influx of players this summer.
You can argue that Cristiano Ronaldo is the driving force behind the improvement of the playing field since he arrived last season, although you simply cannot ignore the fact that oil money talks.
Al-Ittihad are coming in as the defending champions after winning their first domestic trophy since 2009 and their ninth overall. Similar to Arsenal in the Premier League last season, Al-Nassr choked their table lead towards the end of the 2022-23 campaign, and the Tigers capitalised.
Without further ado, join SBOTOP as we examine the marquee games to look out for on the first matchday.
Al-Raed vs Al-Ittihad
Al-Ittihad’s first game will be against Al-Raed on Monday at the King Abdullah Sport City Stadium. On paper, Al-Ittihad are the better team than Al-Raed, who finished 10th in the league standings last term, so the Saudi Pro League 2023 odds expect the defending champions to start their 2023-24 campaign on a high note.
The Tigers dominate in their head-to-heads against Al-Raed, winning 18 of their last 30 meetups, and Al-Raed’s last victory over A-Ittihad was a 2-1 result back in 2018.
However, they weren’t able to achieve a league double against them last season. Al-Ittihad won 1-0 against Al-Raed in their first league meeting before drawing 0-0 last February.
Mohammed Fouzair and Karim El Berkaoui will lead the way once more for Al-Raed. Last season, they scored 20 goals combined, so they will be tasked with breaching Al-Ittihad’s backline.
Another player to look out for if you’re Al-Ittihad is Julio Tavares. The Cape Verde striker is an imposing presence in the final third for Al-Raed, and he’s great at holding up play, leading the team with five assists last season.
Karim Benzema will take the spotlight for Al-Ittihad, and he has been as good as advertised. The 2022 Ballon d’Or winner has already notched three goals in his first four games for the Tigers, guiding them to the quarter-finals of the Arab Club Champions Cup.
Monday might also mark the much-awaited debut of Fabinho, who arrived on a $51.3 million transfer last week. The former Liverpool man has signed a deal until 2026, and he’ll partner N’Golo Kante in midfield.
Al-Ahli vs Al-Hazem
The next opening day matchup to look forward to is the battle between Al-Ahli and Al-Hazem, two sides that are newly promoted to the Saudi Pro League.
Al-Ahli won Division 1 last season, while Al-Hazem finished second, and it’ll be interesting to see whether they can maintain their top-flight status at the end of the 2023-24 season.
But if you point a gun to our heads and ask which team has a better chance of staying up, it’s definitely Al-Ahli because of the moves they’ve made this summer.
The Royals significantly strengthened their attack with the acquisitions of Riyad Mahrez, Roberto Firmino, and Allan Saint-Maximin, while Edouard Mendy is going to be their man between the posts, and Ezgjan Alioski was once a star for Leeds United during their time in the Premier League not too long ago.
On the other hand, Al-Hazem’s notable addition is full-back Yazeed Al-Bakr, who has been with Al-Taawoun since 2021. Looking at these two clubs side by side, you can see that there’s a big talent gap, so Al-Ahli should win this one easily.
Al-Ettifaq vs Al-Nassr
Perhaps the most mouthwatering matchup is the opener between Al-Ettifaq and Al-Nassr, which will be held at the Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium.
These are two teams that made headlines in the Saudi Pro League 2023 news in terms of transfers. Hosts Al-Ettifaq tapped Liverpool icon Steven Gerrard to be their new manager and then went on to bring in Jordan Henderson as well as Moussa Dembele from Lyon.
Gerrard and Henderson go way back at Liverpool, as the latter basically inherited the captain’s armband from the former. Both midfielders are proven winners at Anfield, and they’ll meet some of their former comrades here in Saudi Arabia.
One of them is Sadio Mane, who joins Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nassr. After a turbulent campaign at Bayern Munich, the Senegalese forward comes in here with a chip on his shoulder.
Al-Nassr also added Alex Telles, Seko Fofana, and Marcelo Brozovic to the squad, making them contenders for the championship once again. But before turning their focus on Al-Ettifaq, Al-Nassr will look to progress to the Arab Club Champions Cup final when they take on Al-Shorta tomorrow.
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