Hilal And Al Ahli Draw As Majrashi Receives Red In Tight Title Clash

Al-Hilal lost their three-point cushion at the Saudi Pro League summit after a goalless draw with Al-Ahli at Kingdom Arena, meaning Al-Nassr’s earlier victory over Al-Riyadh moved Al-Nassr within one point,

while Al-Ahli finished the night still third, now three points off the leaders despite playing the closing stages with ten players.

The match developed into a tactical battle rather than an open contest, as both attacks struggled to find rhythm, with Al-Hilal managing only six attempts and Al-Ahli eight, and statistical models measuring expected goals rated Al-Hilal at 0.19 xG and Al-Ahli at 0.78 xG, underlining how few clear chances either side created across the ninety minutes.

Al-Ahli did not register a single shot on target, marking the first Saudi League match without an effort on goal for Al-Ahli since facing Al-Raed in May 2024, while Al-Hilal’s attack looked below usual levels despite reports that the club are finalising a move to sign Karim Benzema from Al-Ittihad to strengthen the forward line.

Al-Hilal began brighter, pressing high and forcing early pressure, as Darwin Nunez saw one effort hooked off the line and another tame strike comfortably taken by Edouard Mendy, with Ruben Neves also seeing a goal-bound attempt blocked, but Al-Ahli gradually grew into the game and started to test the home defence after the interval.

Galeno carried much of Al-Ahli’s threat, first shooting wide before another strike was smothered by Kalidou Koulibaly after half-time, and although Al-Ahli continued to press forward, Al-Hilal produced only one second-half shot, with captain Salem Al Dawsari briefly thinking the deadlock was broken until a close offside decision cancelled the effort six minutes from time.

Despite the presence of Ivan Toney, Riyad Mahrez and Galeno, centre-back Ibanez emerged as Al-Ahli’s main attacking outlet, generating 0.53 xG from two attempts, sharing the team lead with two chances created, recording a match-high 60 touches, completing both attempted dribbles, and finishing with the joint-most interceptions, reflecting a notable all-round display from defence.

The closing minutes became increasingly tense as Matthias Jaissle’s Al-Ahli chased a decisive goal, yet the push backfired when Ali Majrashi collected two yellow cards within eight minutes, the second issued in stoppage time for a late challenge on Theo Hernandez, leaving Al-Ahli short-handed and preserving a draw that keeps the Saudi Pro League title race finely balanced.

Away from home, but never alone #AlAhli #RoshnSaudiLeague pic.twitter.com/xjGyxajAN8Al-Ahli Saudi Club (@ALAHLI_FCEN) February 2, 2026