RIYADH — Al Hilal continued its record-breaking winning streak, distancing itself significantly from its closest competitors in the Saudi Professional League, following a 3-1 victory over Al Riyadh in round 23 of the championship on Friday. The capital's blue team turned the tables on their host, Al Riyadh, which had taken the lead through an own goal by Al Hilal's defender Ali Al Bulaihi, who mistakenly directed the ball into his own net in the 52nd minute of the second half. Al Hilal's striker, Aleksandar Mitrovic, missed a penalty for his team in the first half's added time, but Martin Campana, Al Riyadh's goalkeeper, successfully saved it. Following Al Riyadh's lead, Al Hilal's coach, Jorge Jesus, made three strategic substitutions, having initially benched Savic and Neves to rest them. Shortly after the changes, Al Hilal equalized through Ruben Neves in the 66th minute with a penalty kick, which Neves executed flawlessly. Only nine minutes separated the equalizing goal and the go-ahead goal for Al Hilal, scored by Brazilian Michael, who converted a cross into Al Riyadh's net. At the match's final minute, a penalty was awarded to Al Hilal, which Mitrovic stepped up to take and successfully converted into Al Hilal's third goal. With this victory, Al Hilal increased its points tally to 65, widening the gap with its closest competitors to 12 points, while Al Riyadh's points remained at 23. Al Hilal has reached a record number of consecutive victories; 27, tying with the world record and now just one game away from surpassing it.
