Cristiano Ronaldo and Al-Nassr go to Al-Shabab on the next day after a damaging 3-1 defeat away to Al-Qadsiah ended their 20-match winning streak across all competitions. The game in Riyadh starts at 19:00 UK time, is not being shown on television in the United Kingdom and will stream live on the official Pro League YouTube channel.
The loss on the weekend was Al-Nassr's first in 20 matches and came after a run that included 16 league wins and four Asian championship victories. Al-Hilal's 2-1 win over Al-Khaleej cut the gap at the top to two points, tightening the pressure before Al-Nassr return to action against a side they beat 3-2 in January.
Jorge Jesus said his squad are trying to recover quickly after a virus outbreak that hit the group before the trip. He said five or six players who featured against Al-Ahli were seriously affected, and added that there are only three matches left in the season. “We are trying to recover the team quickly,” Jesus said, while also noting that the players are pushing hard for the championship at the business end of the campaign.
Al-Shabab, 13th in the table and free from relegation pressure, are coming off a 5-1 home defeat to Al-Taawon and will be without Abderrazak Hamdallah, who is serving a seven-day club suspension. The striker's absence removes one of the few individual threats in a fixture that has often leaned toward Al-Nassr, who have won 22 of the 29 official meetings between the clubs and average 2.65 goals per league game this season.
The recent form still points to Al-Nassr as the stronger side, but the margin for error has gone. If they win here and Al-Hilal play one more match before next Tuesday's derby, Al-Nassr could enter that game with a five-point lead. After a week in which the unbeaten feel around the title race vanished, the response in Al-Shabab will say more about their nerve than their numbers.
