Gabriel Martinelli settled it in the 89th minute, heading Al-Hilal to a 1-0 win over Al-Hazem and keeping them on top of the Saudi Pro League table. It was the kind of finish that turned a tense night into three points in one blink.
The result matters now because the standings were on the line all evening, and Al-Hazem made Al-Hilal work for every inch. Jindrich Stanek kept Al-Hazem alive with a fingertip save in the sixth minute, Martinelli struck the crossbar later in the first half, and Stanek had to save twice in the 40th minute to leave the match level at halftime.
Al-Hazem were not passive while the leaders pushed. Aboubacar Bah slipped a perfectly weighted pass into Ahmed Al-Shamrani in the 84th minute, and Sharmani lobbed Yassine Bounou only to miss the post by centimeters, the sort of chance that can change a table chase in a single touch. Earlier, a goal from Ollie Watkins was ruled offside after a VAR review in the 66th minute, and Simone Inzaghi made his first substitutions in the 76th minute as the match tightened.
The late winner did more than decide the scoreline. Salem Al-Dawsari returned to the pitch for the first time since his injury after the World Cup, which gave Al-Hilal another important step in a match built around control, pressure and one decisive header. Al-Hazem came with a 5-4-1 shape and nearly turned the night into an upset, but the standings still show Al-Hilal at the top, with Al-Hazem left to rue how close they came to changing that picture. An unrelated Al-Ahli match against Al-Fayha was also mentioned in the wider round.
