Al-Hilal opened its campaign in the Saudi Pro League with a valuable victory over Al-Riyadh with a clean two-goal score, but at the same time faced clear physical challenges, which made its Italian coach, Simone Inzaghi, speak about the fatigue crisis that appeared on his players.

Inzaghi confirmed in the press conference after the match that the team prepared well for the game and deserved the three points, but fatigue was clearly visible in the last fifteen minutes, justifying this by the short preparation period that started after the Club World Cup.

The Italian coach pointed out that the delay in starting preparations, compared to other teams, reflected on the physical readiness, as Al-Hilal began its preparations at the beginning of August, which made him expect a physical decline at certain periods of the matches.

Inzaghi spoke about the substitution of João Cancelo, explaining that the player wanted to continue until the end, but the technical decision was necessary to maintain balance, affirming that the relationship between them is special and that there are no disagreements.

He also praised the performance of the substitutes, commending Malcom who shone and scored, in addition to the outstanding local players like Mu'tab Al-Harbi, Nasser Al-Dosari, Hassan, and Salem Al-Dosari, considering that they presented levels that meet the team's ambitions.

The coach expressed his surprise at the club's inability to register Brazilian striker Marcos Leonardo in the team's roster, confirming that he is a player with great abilities and that he wished to benefit from him in the upcoming matches.

Al-Hilal, for its part, collected its first three points of the new season by winning against Al-Riyadh 2-0 thanks to goals from Mu'tab Al-Harbi and Malcom, while preparing to face Al-Qadisiyah on September 12, before entering its continental obligations through the AFC Champions League.

The blue team relies on its strong results in the Club World Cup in the United States, where it caught attention against Real Madrid and Manchester City, in addition to its major signings by acquiring Theo Hernandez and Darwin Nunez, aiming to regain the league title that it lost last season to Al-Ittihad.