JEDDAH, 12 December 2007 — Al-Ittihad suffered their first Saudi Footbal League defeat of the season yesterday at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh against Al-Shabab 3-2 in one of the most exciting games.
Al-Shabab took advantage of vital rookie mistakes by Ittihad’s veteran defenders to deprive Jeddah Tigers of points for the first time in the tournament. The two teams played a fast first half with chances galore on both ends of the pitch. The home team cashed in on their chances in the first half while the guests through newly signed Brazilian forward Alfis kept missing the target.
Al-Shabab scored the first goal in 14th minute courtesy of national forward Abdu Etaf who netted a loose ball from a weak header by Ittihadi defender Reda Tukar who was trying to to clear a ball in the box.
Al-Shabab’s second goal came via a controversial penalty kick in the 40th minute after Juan Martinez was pushed down in the box by Ittihadi midfielder Ibrahim Al-Suwad. Ittihad managed to pull back a goal in the 48th minute of the match from a free kick. Chico tricked the defenders by passing the ball instead of taking the shot to Alfis who struck a strong left-footed shot into the net.
Ittihadi veteran defender Tuker again fumbled in the tight match losing the ball to substitute Naji Magrashi. Ittihad goalkeeper Tasser Al-Nitaif dipped the play away from goal but the rushing forward Nasser Al-Shamrani collected the ball and tipped it back in the net for Shabab’s third goal.
Down by two goals, Ittihad, led by team captain Mohammed Nur, struggled to get back in the game. Hassan Kita was brought down in the box giving Ittihad a penalty shot in the 86th minute. Nur converted the penalty kick scoring his team’s second goal and raising his personal tally to six. Despite the defeat Ittihad remained on top of the team standings with 25 points, while Shabab jumped two notches to third with 19 points.
