Al Hilal keep Ronaldo trophy-less in Saudi league

RIYADH: Record-breaking Al Hilal sealed their fourth Saudi Pro League title in five years on Saturday, extending Cristiano Ronaldo’s wait for silverware in the big-spending competition.

Al Hilal, who lost Neymar Junior to injury in October, beat bottom-placed Al Hazm 4-1 to go an unbeatable 12 points clear of Ronaldo’s Al Nassr with three matches remaining.

The title seals a formidable campaign by Al Hilal, who remain unbeaten in 31 league matches and put together a run of 34 consecutive wins in all competitions — a record for a top-flight team.

Jorge Jesus’s Riyadh club have now secured bragging rights in the most anticipated Saudi season of all time, after Ronaldo’s arrival in January last year triggered a flood of bigname arrivals.

Neymar, Karim Benzema, Sadio Mane, N’golo Kante and Riyad Mahrez were among the veterans to up sticks for Saudi, the world’s biggest oil exporter, on eye-watering contracts.

The ‘Big Four’ Saudi clubs — Al Hilal, Al Nassr, Benzema’s Al Ittihad and Mahrez’s Al Ahli — are all owned by the Public Investment Fund, the sovereign wealth vehicle that is driving Saudi’s economic diversification from oil.

Al Hilal will look to frustrate Ronaldo, 39, again when they take on city rivals Al Nassr in the King’s Cup final on May 31.

Earlier, in an exhilarating match at King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah, Al Ettifaq handed Al Ittihad a significant 5-0 defeat on Friday.

This victory temporarily propelled Al Ettifaq to sixth place in the standings, raising their points total to 44, while Al Ittihad’s struggles intensified, leaving them stagnant at 50 points and extending their winless streak with a third consecutive loss.

Al Ittihad faced significant challenges due to a substantial number of injuries, entering the match with only five substitutes and missing 13 players, including fielding only two foreign professionals, Romarinho and N’golo Kante.

Al Ettifaq’s scoring spree began in the fifth minute with a powerful shot from Ivorian Séko Fofana, which found the back of the net. Despite losing Demarai Gray early on due to injury, substitute Haroun Kamara earned a penalty shortly after entering the game. Moussa Dembele confidently converted the penalty to double Al Ettifaq’s lead.