French striker Karim Benzema debuted in the Saudi league without scoring but with an assist in Al-Ittihad’s 3-0 win over Al-Raed on Monday. It was the first round of the competition.
The goals of the match were all scored in the second half, with Abderrazak Hamdallah opening the scoring in the 14th minute of the second half, and Brazilian Igor Coronado scoring two more, in the 28th and 35th minutes of the final stage.
This was not Benzema’s first game with Al-Ittihad. The Frenchman made his debut on July 27th and scored in the 2-1 victory over Espérance, from Tunisia, for the Arab Champions Cup.
Who entered the field for the first time for the team was midfielder Fabinho, who started as a starter. Thanks to a steal from the Brazilian, Benzema set up the Moroccan Hamdallah to score Al-Ittihad’s first goal.
Congratulations tigers 🐅 pic.twitter.com/MvoeDa7xb9
— Ittihad Club (@ittihad_en) August 14, 2023
Next, Igor Coronado doubled and scored the third, taking advantage of a rebound from Kanté, another of the club’s great signings.
After the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nassr, in January, Saudi football is experiencing a “boom”, attracting several world football stars thanks to the high salaries offered by the clubs.
Brazilian striker Roberto Firmino scored a hat-trick on his debut for Al-Ahli, who have also signed big names such as Riyad Mahrez, Allan Saint Maximin, Frank Kessié and Edouard Mendy.
Al-Hilal, who are very close to signing Neymar, beat Abha 3-1 this Monday, with three goals from Brazilian Malcom.
Source: Gazetaesportiva
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