Saudi Arabian League club, Al Hilal, broke the world record for consecutive wins after beating Al Ittihad in the quarter-finals of the 2023-2024 Asian Champions League. The Al Ittihad vs Al Hilal match in the second leg of the 2024 Asian Champions League quarter-final took place at King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah, Wednesday (13/3/2024).
Al Hilal managed to beat Al Ittihad, defended by Karim Benzema, with a score of 2-0 through goals from Yasser Al-Shahrani in the 61st minute and Malcom (90+5). The victory put Al Hilal ahead 4-0 on aggregate and guaranteed a place in the semifinals of the 2024 Asian Champions League.
Quoted from ESPN, apart from ensuring a semifinal ticket, this result also brought Al Hilal the 28th consecutive win in one season, breaking a world record. Al Hilal sured the 27 consecutive wins that Welsh Premier League club The New Saints had in the 2016-2017 season.
“This is truly an extraordinary achievement and I want to thank everyone at the club for their role in this important record win,” said Al Hilal coach from Portugal, Jorge Jesus. “As I have said throughout this period, however, records are not more important than trophies,” he said. “Everyone at Al Hilal must ensure that we finish the season as champions of the Saudi League and fulfill our target in the league cup. Only then, we can truly celebrate,” he said.
In the domestic league, Al Hilal is 12 points ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr in the Saudi Pro League. Interestingly, Al Hilal recorded this record despite losing its star, Neymar, to an ACL injury last October.
Al Hilal’s success comes from the prowess of former Fulham and Newcastle striker Aleksandar Mitrovic in scoring goals. The Serbian national team player recorded 29 goals in 28 matches in league and continental competitions.
Kalidou Koulibaly, Ruben Neves and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic also played key roles in the impressive performance. Al Hilal’s world record includes winning 16 matches in the Saudi League, three in domestic cups and eight in the Asian Champions League. The last time the team went winless was on September 21 when they drew 1-1 against league rivals Damac.
