The King Abdullah Sports City Stadium (Jewel of the Crown) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, will host the "Classico" match between Al-Ittihad and Al-Hilal this evening, Tuesday, in the second leg of the AFC Champions League quarter-finals. The Asian Football Confederation has appointed Chinese referee Ma Ning to officiate the Saudi "Classico," with kick-off scheduled for 22:00 local time.
Al-Hilal enters this match as a strong favorite to advance to the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League, especially after winning the first leg against Al-Ittihad 2-0. Furthermore, if Al-Hilal wins today, they will set a record for the longest winning streak in history, having achieved their 27th consecutive victory across all competitions against Al-Riyadh (3-1) last Friday in the Roshn Pro League, matching the record set by Welsh team The New Saints, which was established in the 2016-2017 season after breaking the previous record held by Ajax Amsterdam (26 consecutive wins) between 1971 and 1972.
On the other hand, Al-Ittihad faces a challenging task to make a comeback following their 2-0 defeat in the first leg and secure a spot in the semi-finals from Al-Hilal, particularly as they will be missing their player N'Golo Kanté due to a red card received during the first leg for a harsh challenge on Senegalese player Kalidou Koulibaly. There are also doubts about the participation of another French player, Karim Benzema, who is struggling with injuries and missed the first leg as well as the earlier match against Al-Hilal (1-3) on March 1 in the 22nd round of the Roshn Pro League.
Argentinian manager Marcelo Gallardo has commented on Benzema's participation, stating, "Benzema felt pain in the past few days and hasn't trained with us; we are waiting for his readiness." Gallardo is expected to rely on the following lineup against Al-Hilal:
Goalkeeper: Abdullah Al-Maiouf
Defense: Madallah Al-Olayan - Luiz Felipe - Ahmed Hegazi - Fawaz Al-Suqour
Midfield: Faisal Al-Ghamdi - Sultan Farhan - Fabinho - Zakariya Hawsawi
Attack: Romarinho - Abdul Razzaq Hamdallah
In contrast, Al-Hilal enters the match with a full squad, and Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus seems inclined to keep Mohammed Al-Owais in goal instead of Moroccan Yassine Bounou to benefit from five foreign field players on the pitch. The expected lineup for Al-Hilal against Al-Ittihad in the AFC Champions League is:
Goalkeeper: Mohammed Al-Owais
Defense: Saud Abdul Hamid, Koulibaly, Ali Al-Bulayhi, Yasser Al-Shahrani
Midfield: Bruno Neves, Mohammed Kanno, Savic
Attack: Malcolm, Mitrovic, Salem Al-Dosari
### Broadcast Channels for the Al-Hilal vs. Al-Ittihad Match
The match can be watched on the following channels:
- beIN Sports AFC (Qatar)
- SSC1 HD (Saudi Arabia)
- Abu Dhabi Sports Asia 1 (UAE)
- Alkass Nine HD (Qatar)
The winner of the Al-Ittihad vs. Al-Hilal match will face UAE's Al Ain in the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League, after Al Ain eliminated another Saudi team, Al-Nassr, by winning on penalties (3-1) in their match yesterday evening at Al-Awwal Park in Riyadh.
