Sports Mole previews Monday’s Saudi Pro League clash between Al Wahda and Al-Hilal, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Al-Hilal will travel to the King Abdulaziz Sports City Stadium to face Al Wahda on the final day of the Saudi Pro League season aiming to complete an unbeaten league campaign.
The visitors have demonstrated their extreme superiority this year, reclaiming their throne as champions after a disappointing third-place finish last term.
Match preview
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Last campaign was a disappointing one for Al-Hilal as they finished third in the league and a considerable distance behind the eventual winners Al-Ittihad, bringing an end to a run of three consecutive title victories.
The summer saw Al-Hilal strengthen heavily with the additions of Aleksander Mitrovic, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Neymar, Kalidou Koulibaly and many more, while Jorge Jesus also made a return to the managerial position.
Jesus had previously been in charge of the side between the Summer of 2018 and January 2019, being sacked due to contractual disagreements with the chairman, despite recording 16 wins and just one loss in his 20 games.
The Portuguese’s record in charge has been even more impressive this time around with two trophies already under his belt, as well as one match away from an entirely unbeaten league season that included a world-record-breaking 34-game winning streak between September and April across all competitions.
Despite an upcoming King’s Cup final against Cristiano Ronaldo‘s Al-Nassr on the horizon, Jesus’s side will be completely focused on preserving their unbeaten status on the final day of the 2023-24 Saudi Pro League season.
Their opponents Al Wehda have nothing left to play for as they hold a four-point lead over Al Riyadh, who are one place behind them, and can only move as high as 11th depending on results elsewhere.
After being in the top half of the table for a large part of the campaign Georgios Donis will be far from pleased with how the final weeks have played out for his side, dropping from ninth on matchday 21 to 13th going into the last game.
While Al Wehda have been much better when playing in their home ground, amassing 22 of their 36 points at home, Al-Hilal pose an entirely different challenge and are certainly the favourites.
Al Wehda have not been able to beat Monday’s opponents since a 2-1 win in December 2020, while they have failed to beat them at home in any of the last seven meetings.
Al Wahda Saudi Pro League form:
Al-Hilal Saudi Pro League form:
Team News
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The hosts could be without up to three players for the ultimate fixture of the Saudi Pro League campaign.
Craig Goodwin picked up an injury during the game against Al-Ahli at the beginning of April but could make a return to the side here, while Hussain Ahmed Al Issa could also be unavailable following an injury in the 2-1 victory over Al Khaleej earlier in the month.
Sultan Al Akouz is ruled out with a cruciate ligament injury that is expected to keep him sidelined until November.
Al-Hilal will come into this crucial final game to secure an entire league season without defeat with no fresh injury worries for the manager to be concerned about.
Big-name signing Neymar has unfortunately been out of the team since a cruciate ligament injury in October, and the champions will continue without him on Monday with his return not anticipated any time soon.
In the Brazilian’s absence, Mitrovic has stepped up as their key player in the attack with 38 goals in 41 matches across all competitions including 27 in the league.
Al Wahda possible starting lineup:
Mohamedi; Al Muwallad, El Yamiq, Al-Hafith, Hawsawi; Bakshween, Al-Hejji; Noor, Anselmo, Van Crooij; Ighalo
Al-Hilal possible starting lineup:
Bono; Abdulhamid, Koulibaly, Albulayhi, Lodi; Neves, Milinkovic-Savic; Michael, Malcom, Al-Dawsari; Mitrovic
We say: Al Wahda 0-3 Al-Hilal
The visitors are clearly the superior side coming into this one and with an invincible season on the line their motivation will not be lacking, and we expect them to confirm their unbeaten status with a win here.
The champions have been outstanding in attack this season scoring a league-high 99 times in 33 matches, and with the hosts conceding on 58 occasions, we believe Al-Hilal will score plenty here too.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.