Al-Ittihad moved level on points with Saudi Pro League leaders Al-Hilal after a 2-1 win over Al-Shabab on Wednesday.
First-half goals from Abdulrahman Al Obud and captain Karim Benzema were enough for a narrow victory.
Al-Ittihad dominated the opening stages but struggled to hit the target until a Benzema effort in the 32nd minute that Abdullah Al Muaiouf could not hold, with Al Obud on hand to break the deadlock.
That sparked Al-Shabab into life, with Abderrazzaq Hamed-Allah seeing their first attempt saved by Predrag Rajkovic, but Al-Ittihad soon doubled their lead.
The hosts broke quickly before Hamed Al Ghamdi did well to direct the ball back to Benzema, who guided his finish into the bottom left corner.
However, just two minutes later, Al-Shabab pulled one back. Daniel Podence played a beautiful ball in front of the goal and Haroune Camara was on the spot to poke the net.
Al-Ittihad tried to regain their two-goal lead after the break, with Steven Bergwijn and Benzema both going close, but a third goal was not needed as they held on.
#RoshnSaudiLeague#Alittihad_AlShababCongratulations Tigers #LegendsWeek pic.twitter.com/PkWVAeName
— Al-Ittihad Club (@ittihad_en) January 22, 2025
Data debrief: Benzema provides the spark
Prior to this match, Benzema had already equaled his goalscoring contributions from last season in the Saudi Pro League, but once again showed that he is not done yet.
The former Real Madrid superstar now has 12 goals for the season, along with his five assists, surpassing his 16 goals from last season.
Inspired by Benzema, this is now the first time since the 2020/21 season that Al-Ittihad have won three consecutive matches against Riyadh-based opposition in the same season, while they have scored in each of their last nine matches against teams from the capital.
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