Preview:Al-Hilal vs Al Quadisiya - prediction, team news, lineups

Front-runners for the Saudi Pro League title, Al-Hilal, will file out against Al Quadisiya at Kingdom Arena on Saturday in their second fixture of the new season.

The former champions got off to a bright start with a 2-0 victory over Al Riyadh in their first game, while the visitors claimed a comfortable 3-1 win over Najma.

Match preview

Al-Hilal missed out on the chance to claim a seventh title in the last nine seasons, finishing second behind Karim Benzema’s Al Ittihad last term.

With increased competition in the Saudi top flight, there was a need for revitalisation after finishing eight points behind Ittihad.

Following the last campaign, the Blue Waves appointed former Inter Milan manager Simone Inzaghi in June to lead the title charge this season, and he began his reign in the domestic competition with a 2-0 win in his first league fixture in charge.

Changes were also made to the playing staff, with the likes of Aleksandar Mitrovic, Mohammed Al-Owais and Yasser Al-Shahrani all leaving on a free transfer. At the same time, Musab Al-Juwayr joined Saturday’s opponents for a fee of €11.5m (£10m).

That said, there were movements in the opposite direction as well, with Darwin Nunez signing from Liverpool, while Theo Hernandez joined from Italian giants AC Milan.

Ahead of this contest, the home side are looking good to claim their second win of the new season, given the gulf in class and their form of four triumphs in the last five meetings against the visitors in the league.

Al Qadsiah come into this fixture in great form, losing only one of their last eight league fixtures, with the defeat recorded against Al Hilal in their last meeting at the same venue.

Going back to last season, the visitors have won six of their last eight matches, with one draw and a loss.

Nevertheless, their away form would be a source of worry for Michel, with a solitary triumph, one draw and four losses in their six fixtures on the road.

Besides their not-too-impressive record away from their stomping ground in recent times, they tend to leak goals on away soil, a situation highlighted by the 10 goals conceded in their last six road fixtures.

However, they can bank on their productive attack that has returned 19 goals in their last 10 league games, including three scored in their first match of the new season.

Al-Hilal Saudi Pro League form:

Al Quadisiya Saudi Pro League form:

Team News

Fans of the home side saw Nunez for the first time in a league game when they recorded a 2-0 victory in their first encounter of the season, but he could not find the back of the net in that match.

However, Hernandez did not feature in that game, but he could be considered to start in Saturday’s encounter.

Yassine Bounou has been the undisputed goalkeeper since he joined the Blue Power in 2023, and he is likely to continue barring any injury before Saturday’s game.

The visiting side will be without centre-back Jehad Thakri, who is out with a torn muscle injury and is likely to miss out on this encounter.

Mateo Retegui scored a brace in his team’s first game of the season, and he is a sure bet to lead the line again this weekend.

Julian Quinones also managed to find the back of the net in their first outing of the season, meaning he is likely to keep his place up front with Retegui.

Al-Hilal possible starting lineup:

Bounou; Cancelo, Koulibaly, Hernandez, Al Harbi; Al Tambakti, Milinkovic-Savic, S. Al Dawsari, Neves; N. Al Dawsari, Nunez

Al Quadisiya possible starting lineup:

Casteels; Al Sharani, Alvarez, Fernandez, Al Shamat; Al Ammar, Al Juwayr, Hazazi, Nandez; Quinones, Retegui

We say: Al-Hilal 3-1 Al Quadisiya

Al Hilal are favoured to earn all the points on offer when they clash with the visiting side this weekend.

While they have lost a few key figures in their squad since the end of last season, they have brought in some quality players to bolster their squad.

Furthermore, their head-to-head record of four wins against Al Qadsiah in their last five meetings suggests that the Blue Waves could claim all three points on Saturday.

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