Preview:Al-Hilal vs. Al Khaleej - prediction, team news, lineups

Al-Hilal will be looking to record a fifth consecutive victory when they welcome Al Khaleej to the King Fahd International Stadium on Friday.

Meanwhile, the away side make the journey to Riyadh aiming to return to winning ways having failed to win any of their last two Saudi Pro League outings.

Match preview

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Al-Hilal saw off the threat of Al Akhdoud thanks to a comprehensive 3-0 victory when the teams went head-to-head at the Al Akhdoud Club Stadium on October 7.

Jorge Jesus's men took the lead in the 10th minute through Michael before a second-half double from Sergej Milinkovic-Savic sealed the deal.

As a result, the Blue Waves have now moved top of the Saudi Pro League table, one point clear of Al Taawon and a further two clear of Al Nassr.

Coming up next is the challenge of an opposing outfit who have been beaten in eight consecutive editions of this fixture across all competitions since 2014.

Having netted 11 times across their four home league outings so far, Friday's hosts will be confident of putting on another attacking masterclass in front of their fans en route to all three points.

Al Khaleej had to make do with a share of the spoils in their encounter against Al Raed which ended in a goalless stalemate at Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium two Saturdays ago.

Pedro Emanuel's men had the larger share of the ball possession and territorial advantage but failed to convert their dominance into anything significant.

With nine points picked up from as many matches so far, Al-Danah are currently 11th in the standings, just two points clear of the drop zone.

Unbeaten in 10 of their last 11 outings on the road, Friday's visitors will back themselves to secure a positive result from yet another away involvement.

Team News

Al-Hilal's Neymar is facing an extended spell on the sidelines after rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament while on international duty.

Fresh from opening his Saudi Pro League account, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic will be seeking to deliver the goods for the home side once again.

Since netting in four matches on the bounce between late August and mid-September, Fabio Martins has failed to score in any of the subsequent three games but remains one to look out for.

Ivo Rodrigues has been an ever-present for the away side this term, and the Portuguese forward is expected to retain his place in the starting XI here.

Al-Hilal possible starting lineup:

Bono; Al Shahrani, Al Bulayhi, Koulibaly, Abdulhamid; Neves, Milinkovic-Savic; Al Dawsari, Malcolm, Michael; Mitrovic

Al Khaleej possible starting lineup:

Sehic; Rebocho, Lopez, Al Khabrani, Al Haydar; Jung, Rodrigues; Narey, Saeed, Martins; Sherif

We say: Al-Hilal 3-1 Al Khaleej

Neymar's recent injury certainly comes as a big blow to Al-Hilal, who boast several weapons in attack nonetheless. We are backing the hosts to carry the day come the end of the 90 minutes.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.