Preview Al Nassr vs Al Okhdood, Prediction, Team news, Lineups

Saudi Pro League: Preview Al Nassr vs Al Okhdood | Date: November 24, 2023 | Time: 23:30 Hrs. | Location: Al Awal Park at King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

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As game week 14 commences, we, Proleaguefootballsaudi.com share preview of Al Nassr vs Al Okhdood scheduled for Nov. 24, 2023 at 20:30 Hrs local time.

Preview: Al Nassr vs Al Okhdood

This Friday, at Al-Awwal Park, Al-Nassr and Al Okhdood, two teams fighting at opposite ends of the Saudi Pro League table, will square off.

With four straight wins, the hosts are in second place, four points behind leaders Al-Hilal. Meanwhile, the visitors have closed the gap to just one point before the international break.

After 13 league games, Al-Nassr is currently four points behind league leaders Al-Hilal. They will regroup from their international break on Friday and hope to close the gap to take first place in the Saudi Pro League.

The Knights of Najd are back in action on Friday after winning six straight league games, scoring 23 goals in that span, and a disappointing 2-2 draw with Abha in early October. They started the season with victories over Damac, Al Fayha, and Al Khaleej, then defeated Al-Duhail 3-2 on the road to maintain their perfect AFC Champions League group-stage record, which was capped off by a hat-trick by Talisca.

Before the recent international break, Castro’s team returned to top-flight action and defeated Al Wahda 3-1. They gained another three points on the board after going ahead three goals early on through Alex Telles, Abdulelah Al-Amri, and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Saudi Pro League: News

In their attempt to reclaim the top division title, Al-Nassr are currently four points behind leaders Al-Hilal in second place. They will look to increase the pressure when they return to action on Friday by winning five straight games. Leaders Al-Hilal have also been a formidable force in the Pro League this season.

Aside from Al Okhdood who is fiercely engaged in a battle at the other end of the division stands in their way, and when they play again, they will still be in the relegation zone.

After their second win of the season in late September, their challenging start resulted in four straight league losses, during which they scored three goals and gave up ten, drawing them level on points with bottom-of-the-table Al Hazem. However, they made a vital comeback to winning ways before the half.

After Jorge Mendonca left, Al Okhdood took over as manager. They recently played Al Hazem, another struggling team, and won 3–1. They went into injury time leading 0–1 but with 10 men after Leandre Tawamba’s goal and Hamed Al Mansour’s 63rd-minute red card. However, they eventually won 2-1 when Tawamba scored a second goal in the 93rd minute and the visitors scored a goal five minutes later.

Sevela’s team came within one point of safety in 16th place after that crucial victory, and they will try to win twice in a row under their new manager on Friday to move out of the bottom three, even though they will be up against one of the division’s title contenders.

Team News

With a starting lineup akin to that of their most recent victory over Al Wahda, Luis Castro will likely line up Al-Nassr in a 4-2-3-1 formation. Cristiano Ronaldo, the team’s talisman, will lead the line as he has scored 16 goals this season—13 of which he has scored with seven assists in just 12 Saudi Pro League games.

With 17 goals in 14 appearances across all competitions this season, Talisca is the only player in the squad with more goals than him. The Brazilian will continue to be an important member of the supporting trio behind Ronaldo, which also includes important summer additions Otavio and Sadio Mane.

Aymeric Laporte, the center back, may stay in the treatment room due to an injury that prevented him from playing for Spain on international duty or in their last game before the break. As a result, Abdulelah Al-Amri and Mohammed Al-Fatil should once again form the core of the back four. Behind them, Seko Fofana should return right away to join Marcelo Brozovic in midfield.

SAUDI PRO LEAGUE 2023-24 FIXTURE

After Al Okhdood won their first game under Martin Sevela’s leadership, he may have wanted to start an unchanged lineup for Friday’s away game. However, he will not be able to use defender Hamed Al Mansour, who was sent off in the match against Al Hazem and will serve a suspension. Besides, he would not be allowed to play against his parent club.

Paulo Ricardo will probably start in the defense in his place, and Andrei Burca, Solomon Kvirkvelia, and Saeed Al-Rubaie should once again start in the middle of a back five.

Leandre Tawamba, who scored three goals for the team this season, will lead the line at the other end of the field with renewed confidence after scoring a brace in the 2-1 victory. Saviour Godwin and Real Betis loanee Alex Collado will try to cause more issues from the wings.

Probable Line-ups: Al Nassr vs Al Okhdood

Al-Nassr possible starting lineup:
Al-Aqidi; Al Ghanam, Al-Amri, Al-Fatil, Telles; Fofana, Brozovic; Talisca, Otavio, Mane; Ronaldo

Al Okhdood possible starting lineup:
Vitor; Al Zabdani, Al-Rubaie, Kvirkvelia, Burca, Ricardo; Collado, Pedroza, Tanase, Godwin; Tawamba

Our Prediction: Al-Nassr 3-0 Al Okhdood

The victory before the break and the new management should give Al Okhdood some confidence, but a trip to Al-Nassr is a whole other ballgame.

Given their talented team and desire to catch up to Al-Hilal, we can only imagine the Al Nassr winning the game on Friday for a record-breaking five times in a row.