In last season, the Saudi league match between Ittihad and Al-Nassr in Jeddah proved to be a pivotal moment in the title race as victories shifted in favor of Nuno Espírito Santo’s team and opened the door for the club to win the ninth championship in May. The defeat in the match and in the competition for control of the Saudi league was very bitter for Al-Nassr, who had been leading the league for most of the season.
Current Situation of the Teams
At this time, Ittihad faces a completely different situation, struggling greatly with performance after replacing the title-winning coach Nuno last month. Al-Nassr has managed to pose a new challenge for the Saudi league title in the 2023-2024 season but seems likely to fail in facing the completely dominant Al-Hilal. Here, the Arabic English website provides a preview of Tuesday night’s match between the long-standing rival Saudi teams.
Context
With nine titles each for Al-Nassr and Ittihad in the Saudi league, both teams are used to competing under the shadow of Al-Hilal (19 titles). This has been the case this season as well, with Al-Nassr trailing by 10 points behind the overwhelmingly leading Al-Hilal, while Ittihad is surprisingly trailing by 22 points. In the 2022-2023 season, Ittihad and Al-Nassr were the two teams fighting for the title, with Al-Nassr seemingly on course to succeed until a winning streak in the final rounds of the season granted Nuno Espírito Santo’s team the championship.
Coaches
Marcelo Gallardo is still in the acclimation period at Ittihad after replacing Nuno Espírito Santo last month. The Saudi team’s results have been unstable since Gallardo’s arrival, and the team lost in the Club World Cup last week to Egyptian Al-Ahly in the quarter-finals. However, Gallardo managed to lead Ittihad to qualify for the group stage of the AFC Champions League.
On his part, Luis Castro has successfully led Al-Nassr since his arrival from Brazilian club Botafogo this summer. Castro has succeeded in implementing an attractive style of play based on the talented attack of the distinguished trio Cristiano Ronaldo, Sadio Mané, and Talisca. Al-Nassr has achieved an average of nearly three goals per match in the Saudi league this season. Despite a heavy 3-0 defeat to Al-Hilal in the Riyadh derby earlier this month, the team managed to qualify for the Round of 16 in the AFC Champions League and the semi-finals of the Saudi King’s Cup.
Main Battle: N’Golo Kanté vs. Talisca
Although attention will be directed towards the standout attackers of both teams Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema, there are other influential players in both teams. The Brazilian Talisca, who plays for Al-Nassr, is one of the players who significantly impacts the team. He has 10 goals and 2 assists in the league this season, and even though he often starts on the right side of Castro’s team, Talisca enjoys moving around the field and tries to direct play from the number 10 position.
To thwart Talisca’s threat, Ittihad will ask midfielder N’Golo Kanté to closely monitor the playmaker. Kanté is considered one of the best players in world football in his prime and is certainly capable of tracking and confronting Talisca to prevent him from influencing the match. While Kanté may not have shown his best performance this season, Ittihad hopes he can regain some form to curb the Brazilian’s threat.
Predictions: This may be the perfect time for Ittihad to get back on track after a tough period, but performance evidence points to just one win, favoring Cristiano Ronaldo and his teammates. Al-Nassr is expected to win the match.
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