RIYADH — Al Hilal returned to winning ways with a commanding 3-0 victory over Al Khaleej on Thursday, keeping the pressure on leaders Al Ittihad in the Roshn Saudi League title race. Captain Salem Al Dawsari led the charge with a goal in each half, while Aleksandar Mitrovic added a late third, lifting Al Hilal to 61 points, four behind Al Ittihad with six rounds remaining. Al Khaleej remain in 10th place on 33 points. Al Dawsari opened the scoring in the 26th minute, finishing off a flowing team move initiated by Kaio César, who laid the ball off inside the box for the skipper to slot home past goalkeeper Raed Azibi. The Saudi international doubled the lead in the 84th minute, this time finishing a counter-attack that began with Ruben Neves, was carried forward by Mitrovic, and ended with a clinical strike to Azibi's left. Two minutes before full time, Mitrovic got on the scoresheet himself, latching onto a stunning through-ball from Neves and coolly finishing to wrap up a convincing win for the hosts. Elsewhere, Al Ettifaq edged Al Riyadh 1-0 in Dammam, courtesy of a Vitinho penalty in the 59th minute. The Brazilian converted after a VAR review confirmed a foul on him by Abdullah Al Khaibari. The result pushes Ettifaq up to 40 points in seventh, while Al Riyadh stay ninth on 34 points. In another match, Al Shabab were held to a goalless draw by Al Okhdood, missing the chance to strengthen their top-five position. Shabab now sit sixth on 50 points, while Al Okhdood remain 16th — in the relegation zone — as their survival hopes hang in the balance.
