DAMMAM: Matchday 9 of the Saudi Pro League kicked off on Thursday amid a host of postponed matches, with the prominent clash between Al-Ahli and Al-Nassr — originally scheduled for Oct. 15 — delayed until March 6, 2027, due to the logistical issues of traveling from Riyadh to Jeddah.
However, all three winners on Thursday were teams that finally broke their winless runs.
At the newly upgraded Al-Majma’ah Sports City Complex in Sudair, Al-Faisaly secured a valuable 3-2 victory over Al-Kholood, thanks to a hat-trick from Alexandre Mendy. He opened his account in the sixth minute from a rebound, before Shaquille Pinas equalized for Al-Kholood with a powerful free-kick.
Al-Kholood took the lead before the break through Julien Domingues, but Mendy leveled in added time, holding off Al-Kholood defender Mansour Camara before finishing powerfully at the near post.
Al-Faisaly goalkeeper Fernando Pacheco saved a Domingues penalty in the 70th minute to keep parity, and in the 85th minute, Mendy headed in the winner to give the newly promoted side their first three points of the season.
In the Eastern Province, Al-Khaleej grabbed their first win of the season, beating Al-Fayha 2-0 thanks to goals from Joshua King and Mateo Benegas. King opened the scoring with a deft backheel into the far corner, before Benegas got on the end of a Mansour Hamzi cross to seal the win.
Al-Fateh celebrated their first victory under Djamel Sellami, bouncing back from a heavy defeat against Al-Ahli to snatch the three points from Al-Hazem.
Former Al-Fateh player Sofiane Bendebka put the hosts 1-0 up from the spot in the 17th minute before Wilfried Kanga equalized 10 minutes later.
Abdulaziz Al-Dwehe’s goal for Al-Hazem in the 49th minute looked set to seal the clash before a late rally from Al-Fateh earned them all three points.
In the 88th minute, Mourad Batna broke through the Al-Hazem defense to find Faisal Al-Abdulwahed in the box for the equalizer, before Batna himself delivered a stunning free-kick from range with the last kick of the game.
Saudi Pro League action returns on Friday with Al-Qadsiah hosting Abha at the Prince Mohammed bin Fahd Stadium in Dammam at 4:15 p.m.