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Al Hilal will travel to Al-Akhdoud on Saturday afternoon with the opportunity to move to the top of the Saudi Pro League. As expected, Al Hilal have started the season strongly with their plethora of new stars and will fancy their chances against Al-Akhdoud who are languishing in the bottom half of the table. The match will take place at the Al Akhdoud Club Stadium in Najran and will kick off at 16:00 UK time.
Al Hilal predicted lineup vs Al-Akhdoud Saudi Pro League team news
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Al Hilal are widely regarded as the team to beat in Saudi Arabia due to the fact that they have won three of the last four league titles and spent a fortune in the summer of bringing in some of the most recognisable faces in world football.
A host of those names are expected to be on show when they face Al-Akhdoud on Sunday afternoon, including the biggest of them all – Neymar. Life in Saudi Arabia hasn’t exactly been plain sailing for the Brazilian superstar so far but he did finally score his first goal for Al Hilal midweek when he helped his side to an Asian Champions League victory over Nassaji.
Other stars who are set to be involved for Al Hilal on Sunday include Ruben Neves, Aleksandar Mitrovic and Bono. Central defender, Kalidou Koulibaly should also be fit again to play from the start after he came through his return from injury on Tuesday night.
Al Hilal predicted lineup vs Al-Akhdoud – Our top three
Neymar – The top dog
The jewel in the Al Hilal crown is undoubtedly Neymar and they will be looking to him once again on Sunday to fire them to the top of the league. The Brazilian has been an output machine for his entire career and even last year in what was considered a poor season for the forward, he managed to contribute 18 goals and 17 assists in 29 games for PSG.
This season, he hasn’t started as quickly as many people might have expected and is yet to find the back of the net in a league game. On a more positive note, he did score his first goal for the club in the Asian Champions League on Tuesday night and he has also contributed three assists in league action.
He’s always been a player who thrives off confidence and the goal he scored this week could be the spark for a run of goals in the league.
Aleksandar Mitrovic – Leading the line
The fact Neymar hasn’t been scoring for fun for Al Hilal hasn’t been a huge problem thanks to Aleksandar Mitrovic who has been leading the line tremendously. So far, the Serbian striker has scored six goals in six league outings for Al Hilal and he will fancy his chances of scoring again against Al-Akhoud to keep up his 1:1 ratio.
Ruben Neves – The conductor
Ruben Neves was an unusual signing for Al Hilal this summer in that he was a player who elected to move to the Saudi Pro League who was still in the prime of his career. He doesn’t seem to be regretting the decision, though, and has stood out in every match so far for the club. Across the first eight league games, his pass success percentage is 90%.
Will Kalidou Koulibaly play against Al-Akhdoud?
Koulibaly returned from injury in the Asian Champions League on Tuesday and came through the match without any issues. As a result, there is no reason why the ex-Chelsea man won’t line up at the heart of the Al Hilal defence for the game against Al-Akhdoud.
Al Hilal predicted lineup vs Al-Akhdoud – The final word
On paper, Al Hilal should wipe the floor with Al-Akhdoud. The home side have only mustered two wins so far this season and don’t boast the same level of talent as Al Hilal. The likes of Neymar and Mitrovic should be far too much for them and we are going for a 4-0 victory for the away team.
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