The seventh round of the Saudi League: Al-Hilal seeks to respond to Al-Taawoun and Al-Nasr faces Al-Khaleej

On Saturday, the seventh round of the Saudi Professional League will be completed with three matches, led by the Al-Hilal test against its host Al-Taawoun in Buraidah, through which Al-Azraq is looking for a quick reaction after its sudden loss to NEOM, while Al-Nasr is a heavy guest on Al-Khaleej in Dammam, and Al-Shabab welcomes its counterpart Al-Fayhaa in the capital, Riyadh, while it is still chasing its first victory this season.

In Buraidah, Al Hilal enters the Al-Taawoun confrontation with the slogan of compensation and nothing else, after suffering its first setback this season by losing to NEOM in the last round, a result that halted its ideal start and froze its score at 15 points, reigniting the competition for the first places.

Italian Simone Inzaghi, Al Hilal's coach, is trying to quickly overcome the effects of the loss and return his team to the winning path, especially since any new stumble could be costly in light of the closeness between the leading teams.

Al Hilal has a large arsenal of attacking options, led by Englishman Ollie Watkins, Brazilian Gabriel Martinelli and Dutchman Summerville, along with Serbian Savic and Sultan Mendes, which gives Inzaghi many solutions in search of regaining effectiveness and returning with the three points from Buraydah.

Despite the technical differences that are in Al Hilal’s interest, the team realizes that the difficult cooperation situation may make the confrontation more complicated. The home team enters the match amid great pressure and a desire to create an awakening that will end the wait for their first victory.

Al-Taawoun did not know the taste of victory during six rounds. It tied in three matches and lost the same, collecting only 3 points and occupying fourteenth place before the start of the round’s matches.

These results put Serbian coach Zarko Lazetic, Al-Taawoun coach, under increasing pressure, as the team is far from its usual levels, which makes facing Al-Hilal an extremely difficult test at a critical stage during which it searches for a result that restores confidence and alleviates the burden of the faltering start.

In Dammam, the Gulf receives its counterpart, Al-Nassr, at Prince Mohammed bin Fahd Stadium, in the face of differing ambitions. The capital team seeks to continue its victories and remain in the heart of the competition for the lead, while the home team is looking for its first victory after six rounds.

Al-Nasr arrives in Dammam after it succeeded in regaining the tone of victories during the last round against Abha, overcoming its setback against Al-Ittihad, despite the absences that accompanied its appearance.

Al-Nasr will regain the services of Portuguese Joao Felix after his absence in the last round due to suspension, giving Australian Postecoglou an important option on the offensive side, while the absence of Frenchman Kingsley Coman is expected to continue.

The last round also witnessed the return of Brazilian goalkeeper Pinto to the squad, after Nawaf Al-Aqidi participated against Al-Ittihad, at a time when Postecoglou seeks to stabilize his team’s return and not allow a new faltering in the lead race.

On the other hand, the Gulf is experiencing a period of frustration and imbalance under the leadership of Portuguese Jose Gomez, after six rounds have passed without the team achieving any victory.

Al-Khaleej collected 4 points from four draws compared to two losses, to occupy thirteenth place before the start of the round, but the results alone do not reflect the extent of the difficulties it experienced recently, after suffering two heavy losses to Al-Hilal 1-5 and NEOM 0-3.

Al-Khaleej succeeded in stopping the series of losses with a goalless draw against Riyadh in the last round, but it is still searching for its first victory, which may give it a much-needed morale boost, even if the task this time comes against a team full of stars and aspiring to return from Dammam with full points.

In the capital, Riyadh, Al-Shabab faces a new confrontation under the pressure of searching for its first victory, when it receives Al-Fayhaa in a match whose points seem very important to the hosts.

The beginning of the youth was not compatible with the aspirations of its fans; He played six matches without achieving any wins, contenting himself with three draws and three losses, to collect 3 points and occupy fifteenth place before the start of the round’s competitions.

German youth coach Thomas Leach finds himself faced with the need to stop the loss of points. Winning has become an urgent requirement to get out of the late positions and relieve the pressure imposed by the faltering start.

Al-Shabab needs to translate some of the levels it presented in its previous matches into results, especially since the continued absence of victories as the rounds progress will increase the difficulty of the team’s position.

As for Al-Fayhaa, Faisal arrived in the capital looking to restore the winning tone after losing its last match, 1-2, in a confrontation during which the Brazilian team, Fabio Carelli, fought until the end, but was unable to come out with any point.

Al-Fayhaa has 5 points, occupying eleventh place, and is looking forward to exploiting the pressures that the youth are experiencing and returning with a positive result that strengthens its position and keeps it away from danger areas.