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Al Ittihad will welcome Al Ettifaq to King Abdullah Sports City in the Saudi Pro League on Friday. The hosts have just one win in their last five games in all competitions, suffering four defeats.
Al Ittihad have suffered back-to-back 3-1 defeats in their last two league outings, including an away loss to Abha last week.
The visitors have seen a drop in form recently and have just one win in their last seven league games. They are winless in their last three games and fell to a 2-1 home loss to Al Fayha last week.
Moussa Dembélé had equalized in the 81st minute, with Georginio Wijnaldum providing the assist but Fashion Sakala restored Al Fayha's lead in the 85th minute to complete his brace.
Al Ittihad are in fifth place in the league standings with 50 points, nine more than the eighth-placed Al Ettifaq. With four games left to play in the league, both teams will look to improve upon their places in the league standings.
Al Ittihad vs Al Ettifaq Head-to-Head
The two teams have squared off 57 times across all competitions thus far. The hosts have the upper hand in these meetings with 34 wins. The visitors have got the better of the hosts 11 times and 12 games have ended in draws.
Nadi Al-Watan are unbeaten in their last five league meetings against the visitors, recording three wins. They last met in November in the reverse fixture, which ended in a 1-1 draw. Interestingly, just two of the last 17 meetings between them have ended in stalemates.
Al Ittihad form guide (Saudi Pro League): L-L-W-D-L
Al Ettifaq form guide (Saudi Pro League): L-D-D-W-L
Al Ittihad vs Al Ettifaq Team News
Al Ittihad
Fabinho remains a long-term absentee with a thigh injury picked up in March. Luiz Felipe has not played since the Saudi Super Cup final last month and is unlikely to start here. Karim Benzema is back from Real Madrid's Valdebebas training complex, where he went last week for the treatment of a recurrent muscle injury. He faces a late fitness test.
Abderrazak Hamdallah was absent against Abha with a muscle injury and has not been spotted in training this week. Ahmed Hegazi is also unlikely to start due to a knee injury.
Injured: Fabinho, Luiz Felipe, Abderrazak Hamdallah, Ahmed Hegazi
Doubtful: Karim Benzema
Suspended: None
Al Ettifaq
Faris Ad-Dahna have a clean bill of health heading into the match. Manager Steven Gerrard is expected to field a strong starting XI as he looks to guide his team to winning ways.
Injured: None
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Al Ittihad vs Al Ettifaq Predicted XI
Al Ittihad Predicted XI (4-3-3): Abdullah Al-Mayouf; Muhannad Al-Shanqeeti, Fawaz Ali Marzouq Al Saqour Al Yami, Hassan Kadesh, Turki Mohammed Yousef Al Jaadi; Faisel Al-Ghamdi, N'Golo Kanté, Ahmed Al-Ghamdi; Saleh Al-Amri, Romarinho, Jota
Al Ettifaq Predicted XI (4-3-3): Paulo Victor; Radhi Al Otaibi, Abdullah Madu, Jack Hendry, Mohammed Abdulrahamn Yousef; Seko Fofana, Álvaro Medrán, Georginio Wijnaldum; Karl Toko Ekambi, Haroune Camara, Moussa Dembélé
Al Ittihad vs Al Ettifaq Prediction
Both teams have endured poor runs of form, with just one win in their last five games. The hosts have scored one goal apiece in their last three games, while the visitors have also scored three goals in their last three outings.
Al Ittihad have suffered three consecutive losses at home while the visitors are winless in their last three away games. Considering the recent struggles of the two teams and their goalscoring form, a low-scoring draw is likely to ensue.
Prediction: Al Ittihad 1-1 Al Ettifaq
