To beat the modest formation of Al-Riyadh, coached by Sabri Lamouchi, Al-Ittihad could not count on a goal from Karim Benzema, Houssem Aouar, Moussa Diaby or the Dutch winger Steven Bergwijn. It was their midfield teammate N’Golo Kanté who gave victory to Al-Ittihad (0-1), Thursday evening, as part of the 8th day of the Saudi League.
While the locals were reduced to 10 in the 28th minute, Al-Ittihad opened the scoring before half-time. On a cross from Diaby, “KB9” let the ball slip to Kanté, whose powerful shot made the nets shake (45th+2).
Kanté recalled by Deschamps?
The 33-year-old French international, spared for the October window after having started the two matches for the Blues in September, scored his first goal of the season. He scored 4 in 46 matches last season. Didier Deschamps could recall him for the two decisive matches in the League of Nations against Israel then Italy in mid-November.
Al-Ittihad records its seventh victory in eight matches and returns to level on points with Al-Hilal, the all-powerful reigning champion, who has won all seven of his Saudi league matches so far, including the clash against Al-Ittihad exactly.
