Al-Hilal FC vs Al-Ittihad FC Prediction: A game of Champions

The stuff of Champions is upon us as Al-Hilal and Al-Ittihad (two top teams In the Saudi Pro League) face off at the Kingdom arena for their first encounter of the season. Both teams are in outstanding form having won their last 3 league games and we can be sure of a tough encounter with an outburst of emotions at the Kingdom arena on Saturday. Please see the carefully prepared tips.

Form: WWW

Hilal continues to shine in the league with three consecutive league victories. They started another league campaign with a sensational victory, and their season opener against Al-Okhdoud ended in a 0-3 win. Aleksandar Mitrovic got the opening goal of the game for Hilal in the 4th minute with another goal in the 38th minute before Milonkovic-Savic tripled their lead in the 46th minute. They scored all three goals in the first half. 

Their second league game against Damac FC before the international break also ended in another 3-2 win to Hilal. Damac FC put up a great performance in that game but it was not enough to put the defending champions down. Hilal also put 3 goals past Al-Riyadh in their third and most recent league game. Aleksandar Mitrovic got a brace in that game and he is the current league top scorer with 6 goals. They are still top of the league table with 3 wins from 3 games played. Their AFC Champions League journey also started with a 1-3 victory over Al-Rayyan. 

Form: WWW

The goals just kept going in as Ittihad put 7 goals past Al-Wehda in their last league game with the game ending in a 7-1 win. Karim Benzema scored a hattrick in that game and his confidence is now off the roof. 

AlIttihad was met with fierce resistance in their opening game against newly promoted Al-Kholood, but Houssem Aouar found the breakthrough for Ittihad at the last minute of the game, which gave Ittihad the well-deserved win. They also came back from a goal down to win their second league game against Al-Taawoun just before the international break. Taawoun got the lead in the 50th minute but Karim Benzema got an equalizer in the 70th minute before Houssem Aouar converted a penalty from the spot in the last minute of the game. They are currently 3rd place in the league table with three wins from three games played and Karim Benzema leads their scoring efforts with 4 league goals. 

A critical look at the last 20 games between them produced 16 wins for Hilal, 3 wins for Ittihad, and a draw. Hilal has gotten the better of Ittihad in their last 20 games. 

It is important to note that Hilal have emerged victorious in their last 7 meetings and they’ve not suffered a loss to Al-Ittihad in their last 12 encounters. Both teams are in great shape but Hilal is currently in beast mode and we do not think they’ll lose to Ittihad, not with their fine blend of players and on their home ground. The best bet here is a win or draw and a total of over 1.5 goals for Hilal. Furthermore, we also expect a total of over 2.5 goals as this has been the case in 6 of their last 8 meetings. Please see some of their head-to-head streaks below; 

• Hilal has won their last 7 meetings
• Hilal has not lost to Ittihad in their last 12 meetings
• There have been more than 2.5 goals in 6 of their last 8 meetings
• Both teams have found the net in 6 of their last 8 meetings