JEDDAH: The Jeddah based Al-Ahli club scored a hard-fought solitary goal win over Al-Watani of Tabuk in their opening league match of the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Cup soccer tournament here yesterday. Al-Watani proved to be tough nuts to crack in Group B that include rivals Al-Ahli and Al-Ittihad.
Despite their loss, Watani sent a warning to their rivals Ittihad that their next encounter won’t be a cakewalk for the latter. Ahli got the match winner during injury time when Abdul Raheem Al-Jizawi ran between two defenders and blasted the net from inside the penalty area to the left of the goalkeeper. Which gave his team three points.
In the other match, Al-Hazem of Al-Rass defeated Al-Raid of Buraidah in Buraidah 1-0 in a Group A match. Hazem are on top with three points while Raid have yet to open their account.
Action continues today with Najran hosting Wehda in Najran in Group C match while Abha hosts Al-Nasr in opening match of Group D. In related news, the Saudi national team lost the friendly match against Bahrain 1-0 in Bahrain. The match is part of the national team preparation for the Gulf Cup action in Oman.
