Fresh from their seismic win over Manchester City, Al Hilal return to their Fifa Club World Cup quest on Friday with a semi-final spot up for grabs.
Standing in their way at the Camping World Stadium in Orlando will be Brazilian side Fluminense, who slayed a European giant of their own in the last 16, sweeping aside Italian club Inter Milan 2-0 on Monday.
With the dust still settling from that surprise win, Al Hilal produced the shock of the tournament so far by defeating Pep Guardiola's City 4-3 in a thrilling battle, despite being without captain Salem Al Dawsari and striker Aleksandr Mitrovic.
With the scores level at 2-2 at the end of 90 minutes, goals from Kalidou Koulibaly and Marcos Leonardo – his second of the match – would earn the Saudi Pro League side victory, despite Phil Foden pulling City level in extra-time.
Midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic described Hilal's achievement as “inexplicable” adding that their performances in the United States is testament to the growing stature of Saudi football.
“We played against one of the best teams in the world and this motivates us more for the next games,” said the Serb midfielder.
“It’s a historic accomplishment for us, the club and the whole country. We believed for every single second and we’ve done it.
“It was a massive game and a huge result. For anyone who doubts our league, we’ve shown on the pitch that the Saudi league is strong – we proved it to the world.
“We were missing several key players, which is never ideal. But our squad is deep and full of quality. Everyone who stepped on to the pitch played at a high level and helped us overcome one of the best teams in the world.”
The win was all the more remarkable for the fact that head coach Simone Inzaghi only took charge two weeks before the start of the tournament, replacing Jorge Jesus.
Despite the fact the Italian has had little time to work with the team, Inzaghi has led Hilal to draws with Spanish giants Real Madrid and Red Bull Salzburg before going on to beat Pachuca and now City.
“It is barely three weeks that we are together and you can see the level of application, they really put the effort in. As a coach clearly that is very satisfying,” said Inzaghi, who left Inter after their Uefa Champions League final thrashing by Paris Saint-Germain last month.
Should they triumph in the quarter-finals, Hilal could face another English Premier League side in the last four as they will take on the winners of Chelsea's clash with Brazilian side Palmeiras.
Ahead of Friday's game, Al Hilal have signed Morocco international Abderrazak Hamdallah on an emergency loan from Saudi club Al Shabab.
The 34-year-old striker and three-time SPL Golden Boot winner trained with the team on Wednesday and will bolster their attacking options with Mitrovic yet to play a single minute at the tournament.
Hamdallah has been a prolific striker in the kingdom, netting 150 goals in 163 SPL games for Al Nassr, Al Ittihad and Al Shabab – leaving him third behind Omar Al Somah (155) and Nasser Al Shamrani (154) in the country's all-time scoring chart.
A well-travelled career has also seen Hamdallah play in Norway, China and Qatar, while his 25 appearances for Morocco have yielded seven goals.
Fluminense, meanwhile, head into the game on a similar high to Hilal having denied Inter the chance of putting one over former coach Inzaghi thanks to goals from German Cano and substitute Hercules.
Like Hilal, Fluminense are unbeaten in the US with goalless draws with Borussia Dortmund and Mamelodi Sundowns sandwiching a 4-2 win over Ulsan HD.
Charismatic manager Renato Gaucho only took over three months ago but has brought the best out of a squad that narrowly avoided the drop from the Brazilian top flight in 2024.
“Despite the short time frame, I praise the players for believing in the new plan. I convinced them that it would work,” Renato said after beating Inter in Charlotte.
“We were not facing just any team. We were facing one of the giants of European football, a team that just a few days ago was playing in the Champions League final against PSG.
“We are very proud of ourselves for the affection and joy we are bringing to our fans and, without a doubt, to Brazilian football.
“We are proving that we have commitment and attitude on the pitch. Off the pitch, we can't compete financially, but on the pitch it's 11 against 11. That's it.”
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
Tips to stay safe during hot weather
- Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
- Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
- Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
- Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
- Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
- Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
- Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
RESULT
Manchester United 2 Tottenham Hotspur 1
Man United: Sanchez (24' ), Herrera (62')
Spurs: Alli (11')
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday (UAE kick-off times)
Cologne v Hoffenheim (11.30pm)
Saturday
Hertha Berlin v RB Leipzig (6.30pm)
Schalke v Fortuna Dusseldof (6.30pm)
Mainz v Union Berlin (6.30pm)
Paderborn v Augsburg (6.30pm)
Bayern Munich v Borussia Dortmund (9.30pm)
Sunday
Borussia Monchengladbach v Werder Bremen (4.30pm)
Wolfsburg v Bayer Leverkusen (6.30pm)
SC Freiburg v Eintracht Frankfurt (9on)
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
