Saudi Gazette report

ABHA — Al-Hilal and Al-Nassr are set to face off in the Riyadh Derby during the Diriyah Saudi Super Cup final, hosted in Abha at the Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Sports City Stadium on Saturday.

Al-Hilal secured their spot in the final after a dramatic penalty shootout victory (4-1) over Al-Ahli, following a 1-1 draw in regular time. Meanwhile, Al-Nassr earned their place by defeating Al-Taawoun 2-0.

Al-Nassr aims to reclaim glory by lifting the trophy, while Al-Hilal seeks their fifth Super Cup title and their second consecutive win.

All eyes are on the tactical showdown between Portuguese managers Jorge Jesus of Al-Hilal and Luís Castro of Al-Nassr. This will be their 15th encounter, with Jesus holding a significant advantage, having won eight matches compared to Castro’s three, with three matches ending in a draw. The two teams have previously met twice in the Super Cup, each securing one victory. Al-Nassr scored three goals in those encounters, while Al-Hilal managed just one.

Al-Nassr is particularly eager to secure a win against Al-Hilal after a series of disappointments last season, including losses in five head-to-head matches. Their last victory over Al-Hilal came a year ago in the final of the King Salman Club Cup, where Cristiano Ronaldo’s brace secured a 2-1 triumph.

The rivalry between these two teams has been intense, with Al-Hilal emerging victorious in all five of their meetings last season, including one in the Riyadh Season Cup. The first clash last season was in December 2023 during the Saudi Pro League's 15th round, where Al-Hilal triumphed 3-0. In February, Al-Hilal defeated Al-Nassr again in the Riyadh Season Cup. Two months later, in the Super Cup semifinal in Abu Dhabi, Al-Hilal once again overcame Al-Nassr with a 2-1 win.

The two teams met twice more towards the end of last season, with their Saudi Pro League match in May ending in a 1-1 draw, and the King’s Cup final also ending in a draw before Al-Hilal claimed the title in a penalty shootout.

Cristiano Ronaldo, the captain of Al-Nassr, struggled to find the net against Al-Hilal’s star goalkeeper, Yassine Bounou, last season. The Moroccan goalkeeper thwarted eight of Ronaldo’s shots across their five encounters. On Saturday, Ronaldo, who scored in Al-Nassr’s 2-0 win over Al-Taawoun, will once again face Bounou, who played a key role in Al-Hilal’s penalty shootout win in the semifinal, in their sixth meeting in less than a year.

Their rivalry began in December of last year in the Saudi Pro League, where Bounou saved Ronaldo’s shot as Al-Hilal won 3-0, thanks to goals from Aleksandar Mitrović and Sergej Milinković-Savić. The following February, they met again in a friendly during the Riyadh Season Cup, where Bounou denied Ronaldo once more, and Al-Hilal won 2-0 with goals from Salem Al-Dawsari and Savic. In April, during the Super Cup semifinal, Bounou saved two more shots from Ronaldo, as Al-Hilal won 2-1.

The two stars faced off again in May, where the Saudi Pro League match ended in a 1-1 draw, with Bounou making another crucial save against Ronaldo. In the King’s Cup final later that month, Ronaldo’s three shots were all saved by the Moroccan goalkeeper, who led Al-Hilal to a 5-4 victory in the penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw in regular and extra time.

The upcoming final on Saturday promises another thrilling encounter between these two giants of Saudi football.