Al-Nassr vs Al-Ittihad

King Saud University Stadium is the venue as Al-Nassr and Al-Ittihad go head-to-head in a blockbuster Saudi Pro League season finale.

Expectations of Cristiano Ronaldo and his teammates had been high early in the season. But a 14-point deficit on unbeaten runaway leaders Al-Hilal proves this hasn’t been the season they prayed for. The new Saudi champions were the last side to beat Al-Nassr, dispatching them 3-1 at this venue in early March. However, Luis Castro’s men have since gone into overdrive, racking up a ten-game unbeaten run (W8, D2), though those two draws came in their last two outings. With nothing but pride left to play for ahead of the final round, Al-Nassr will at least look to complete their first league double over Al-Ittihad since 2017/18 following an overwhelming 5-2 victory in December’s reverse fixture, with Ronaldo, who scored a double in that encounter, aiming to confirm his stranglehold on the top-scorer award.

On the other hand, Al-Ittihad eased past Damac 4-1 in the penultimate round to end a disheartening four-game winless league run (D1, L3) and give themselves an outside chance to secure continental football for next term. Last season’s champions have had a disappointing campaign, winning under 50% of their top-flight matches (16/33) despite poaching the likes of Karim Benzema from Real Madrid only last summer. As the ex-Ballon d’Or winner seeks a way out of the desert, Marcelo Gallardo’s men hit the road in the season finale, seeking an improvement on a dismal four-game away form in the Saudi Pro League (W1, D1, L2). And they may well find some solace in Riyadh, where they’ve not lost any of their last five top-flight H2H meetings with Al-Nassr (W3, D2).