Al-Hilal maintained their unbeaten streak in the Saudi Pro League by overcoming Al-Najma 4-2, despite trailing twice. Al-Najma initially took the lead through Lazaro, but red cards for both Lazaro and Jawad El Yamiq shifted the momentum.
Salem Al-Dawsari, Theo Hernandez, and Ruben Neves all scored for Al-Hilal, securing their victory.
Al-Najma’s first goal came when Yassine Bounous’ clearance fell to Lazaro, who scored from a distance. However, Al-Dawsari quickly equalised by firing past Victor Braga. The match saw a turning point in the 58th minute when Lazaro received a red card for kicking an opponent. Despite being a man down, Al-Najma regained the lead as Neves accidentally turned the ball into his own net.
Al-Hilal responded with another equaliser when Al-Dawsari set up Hernandez to score in the bottom-right corner. The decisive moment arrived in the 76th minute when El-Yamiq was sent off for a last-man foul. Neves then converted the resulting free-kick to put Al-Hilal ahead. In the closing moments, Al-Dawsari added another goal by skillfully dribbling around Braga before scoring.
Malcom nearly extended Al-Hilal’s lead further but hit the woodwork during stoppage time. The victory marked another successful outing for Simone Inzaghi’s team, who dominated with 18 shots and an expected goals (xG) tally of 2.09 compared to Al-Najma’s 0.3 from four attempts.
This victory extends Al-Hilal’s remarkable run against teams they face for the first time in the league. They have now won their last 23 such matches, scoring at least twice in 19 of them and keeping clean sheets in 12 encounters. Meanwhile, Al-Najma matched an unwanted record held by Al-Ansar by losing their first eight matches of a season.
The match highlighted Al-Hilal’s resilience and ability to capitalise on opportunities even when faced with setbacks like conceding early goals or dealing with player dismissals. Their performance underscores why they remain a formidable force in the Saudi Pro League.