An inspiring performance from Brazil’s Malcom helped Al-Hilal earn a 2-0 win over El-Ettfiaq before the highly-anticipated Saudi El Clasico.
Al-Hilal head coach Jorge Jesus was forced to play with a different midfield setup as Sergej Milinkovic-Savic is serving a three-game suspension.
The Serbian was sent off against Al-Raed last week for a physical altercation with Oumar Gonzalez, who was also shown a red card.
To add to their woes, their £78 million signing Neymar was also not deemed fit for the encounter as recent reports suggested the Brazilian could be making his debut against Al-Ittihad next week.
As a result, highly-rated Saudi midfielder Mohamed Kanno was restored to midfield along with Ruben Neves as Aleksandar Mitrovic continued to lead Al-Hilal’s attack with Kalidou Koulibaly also returning to the starting lineup after a minor setback.
Meanwhile, Steven Gerrard’s Al-Ettifaq had to do without the services of former Lyon forward Moussa Dembele and ex-Wolfsburg defender Marcel Tisserand due to injury.
It didn’t take long for Al-Hilal to get their first sight on goal as Mitrovic’s header glanced the bar after the opening eight minutes.
The hosts took the lead in the 24th minute after a lovely combination play between Mitrovic and Malcom before the latter pulled off an outrageous finish on the half-volley to open the scoring.
Al-Ettifaq players had shouts for a penalty five minutes before half-time but were denied a spot-kick by the referee as Robin Quaison was offside.
Just seconds later, Al-Hilal established a two-goal cushion through their skipper Salem Al-Dawsari, who netted his third of the season with an improvised finish.
The second half saw Al-Ettifaq attack with more speed and purpose on the break but without creating any real threat to Yassine Bounou’s goal.
A lacklustre display from Steven Gerrard’s men meant they have now dropped points for the second consecutive week despite an impressive start.
On the other hand, a win for Al-Hilal serves as a morale booster ahead of their crucial encounter with rivals Al-Ittihad in the Saudi El Clasico on Friday.