Al Khaleej vs Al Nassr Predictions
Al Khaleej welcome Al Nassr to EGO Stadium on Saturday in a Saudi Pro League contest.
Al Nassr returned to winning ways against Abha and should have too much attacking quality for an Al Khaleej side still searching for their first league victory.
An away win with over 2.5 goals is my best bet, while I also have a stake on the visitors to score three goals or more.
Al Nassr Can Claim High-Scoring Win
- Al Nassr won 5 of their last 6 matches (Saudi Pro League)
- Al Nassr have seen over 2.5 goals in their last 6 matches (Saudi Pro League)
- Al Nassr scored 3+ goals in 3 of their last 4 away matches (Saudi Pro League)
- Al Nassr won their last 7 matches against Al Khaleej
- Al Khaleej lost 7 of their last 11 matches (competitive fixtures)
- Al Khaleej conceded 3+ goals in 2 of their last 3 matches
Al Nassr Dominate H2H Record
Al Khaleej and Al Nassr have met on nine occasions since 2020. Al Nassr won eight of those matches, while one game finished level.
The visitors have won seven successive encounters, including a 5-0 victory at this venue in March.
Al Khaleej Remain Winless
Al Khaleej return to Saudi Pro League action on Saturday after a goalless home draw against Al Riyadh earlier this week.
Jose Gomes's side enjoyed 64% possession but were unable to turn their territorial dominance into a winning goal.
The clean sheet offered some encouragement after heavy defeats against Al Hilal and Neom. Al Khaleej lost 5-1 at home to the former before slipping to a 3-0 defeat on their trip to Neom.
Now winless in their last 12 matches, the hosts have collected four points from their opening six SPL fixtures, drawing four and losing two. They remain 13th in the division, already 11 points behind their opponents this weekend.
A lack of attacking quality has been their biggest concern. Al Khaleej scored only two goals in those six games and failed to find the net in four.
Home results have brought little joy. Goalless draws against Al Shabab and Al Riyadh came either side of the heavy defeat against Al Hilal.
Recent results against Al Nassr offer little encouragement. Al Khaleej shipped 20 goals while losing their last seven encounters, including a 5-0 defeat at this venue in March.
Al Nassr Return to Winning Ways
Al Nassr make the trip to Dammam after a hard-fought 2-1 home victory against Abha on Wednesday.
Cristiano Ronaldo opened the scoring in the first half before Abdullah Al Hamdan doubled the lead after the interval. Nabil Fekir pulled one back with 15 minutes remaining.
Al Nassr were good value for their win. The hosts outshot Abha 19-5, while final xG totals of 1.34 and 0.27 reflected their dominance.
Wednesday's victory provided a quick response to Saturday's disappointing 2-1 defeat at Al Ittihad.
Ange Postecoglou's men won five and lost one of their opening six league fixtures, and now sit level with league leaders Al Hilal after their surprise defeat against Neom.
Strong on their travels, Al Nassr won their first three away league games, scoring four at Al Diriyah, four at Al Riyadh and three at Al Ettifaq before last weekend's setback.
High-scoring outcomes remain frequent for the Knights of Najd. All six of their SPL fixtures finished with over 2.5 goals, with 16 scored and seven conceded. They kept only one clean sheet in that period.
Al Khaleej vs Al Nassr Team News
Al Khaleej: (4-1-4-1) Anthony Moris; Saeed Al Hamsal, Boubakar Kouyate, Mohammed Al Khabrani, Rebocho; Omar Mascarell; Nawaf Al Sadi, Majed Omar Kanabah, Miguel Crespo, Angelo Fulgini; Thamer Al Khaibri
Gomes could retain much of the same XI that started Monday's draw against Al Riyadh. The home side have no reported injury issues.
Musa Barrow is in contention for a place in the attack after coming off the bench against Al Riyadh.
Al Nassr: (4-4-2) Bento; Nawaf Al Boushail, Mohamed Simakan, Abdulelah Al Amri, Salem Al Najdi; Kingsley Coman, Angelo Gabriel, Samu Costa, Sadio Mane; Abdullah Al Hamdan, Cristiano Ronaldo
Head coach Postecoglou has a few injury issues to deal with ahead of the trip to EGO Stadium.
Sultan Al Ghannam misses out with a knee injury while Joao Felix faces a late fitness test after missing the win against Abha. Kingsley Coman is also set to remain sidelined.