By Mohammed Al-Kinani
JEDDAH – Al-Hilal secured the Zain Saudi Professional League title after beating its host Al-Hazm 2-0 at Al-Hazm Club Stadium Sunday.
With 50 points and three more matches to go, Hilal also secured a place in the AFC Champions League. The win hands Hilal 49 crowns, 12 of them league titles.
In other matches, Ittihad defeated its host Al-Nasr 1-0, while Al-Ra’id beat Al-Qadisiyah 2-0 at home.
Striker Eissa Al-Muhayani put Hilal in the lead five minutes before the break. Nawaf Al-Abed sealed the win in midway through the second half.
Hilal and Hazm put on a good performance from the start, but the latter could not resist the league leader’s stars for long.
Christian Wilhelmsson was at his usual best and it was on his cross that young striker Muhayani kicked with his heel to put Hilal up 1-0.
Al-Abed, a replacement for Wilhelmsson, put Hilal up 2-0 for good in the 72nd minute when he hit the ball which bounced off Hazm keeper on a shot by Brazilian midfielder Thiago Nevez.
Both the sides made a couple of replacements each but they did not do them any good.
Hazm dearly missed the services of the injured Salahuddin Eqal and Waleed Al-Jaizani, who has left for Al-Shabab.
The match again saw a breach in security when two teenagers entered the field but were arrested before they could reach Yasser Al-Qahtani, towards whom they seem to be running.
An early and the only goal at King Fahd International Stadium by striker Talal Al-Misha’al gave Al-Ittihad three points in its match against Al-Nasr.
The unmarked Al-Misha’al headed the ball into the right corner of Nasr keeper Khaled Radhi on a cross from Saud Kariri in the 3rd minute.
Ittihad is third in the standings with 36 points and has a match in hand, while Al-Nasr is fourth on 30 points and two matches in hand.
Ra’id, meanwhile, collected its three points with a 2-0 win over 10-man Al-Qadisiyah at the King Abdullah Sport City Stadium.
Abdul-Majeed Al-Ruwali and Mousa Al-Shammari scored the goals.
The win puts Ra’id in the 11th spot with 11 points and a match in hand. Al-
Qadisiyah, however, is a spot behind with the same number of points but a nine-goal difference.
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