JEDDAH, 10 September 2006 — Al-Ittihad’s Mexican import Jared Borgetti struck in the nick of time — the 90th minute — to give his side a winning start in the Saudi Soccer League with a 3-2 victory over Al-Taie at the Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium here.
Twice the visitors took the lead and both the times, the hosts pulled back the deficit to set up the nth minute winner from Jared. Though the match was a difficult one for Ittihad with Taie matching them stride for stride for the majority of the match, it also proved a perfect practice match for the Jeddah outfit as they gear up for their AFC Champions League clash against Al-Karama of Syria here next Wednesday.
Taie was the first to score in the 20th minute with Fahd Al-Ghamdi capitalizing on a fatal Ittihad defensive lapse. Ittihad equalized in the 68th minute from a nice diving header from Hamza Idrees, and the thousands of Ittihadi fans expected more of the same after their side had got on to the score sheet.
But Taie, playing a strong midfield game, surprised the fans again by Senegal’s Djibril Cisse scoring the second goal from a nice header inside the penalty box.
Ittihad’s attack was once again spurred into action and though they showed spirit, they had to wait for their second strike. It was Idrees who created the chance.
Idrees, who was proving to be a veritable thorn in the Taie defense, was tackled inside the penalty box and the resultant penalty was struck true by Jared, who had stepped up to take the shot. And seven minutes later he was once again in position the nod home a fine cross past the Taie goalkeeper.
In an another match, Al-Nasr defeated Al-Hazem 3-1 in Riyadh on Friday to pick up the first three points in the league. On Monday, Al-Ahli will face Al-Wehda in Jeddah.
