Al-Hilal Faces Al-Taawoun: Avoiding Back-to-Back Defeats

Al-Hilal walk into Buraidah on Saturday with top spot in the Saudi Roshn League – and an old fear – riding with them.

The league leaders face Al-Taawoun in the seventh round, still stung by their first defeat of the season, a 2-0 loss to Neom on Monday in the sixth round. The setback didn’t just cost them momentum. It stirred up an unwelcome memory.

Inside the club, they know it well. The “curse” of back-to-back league defeats.

“The Boss” haven’t suffered consecutive league losses for almost five years. The last time it happened, the pain came from very close to home.

Back in December 2021, Al-Hilal fell 2-0 to their fierce Riyadh rivals Al-Nassr. One round later, they were beaten again, this time 3-2 by Al-Fateh. Two defeats in a row. Title hopes shaken. Questions everywhere.

Since that grim stretch, the capital club have treated a league defeat as a hard stop. Whenever they’ve slipped, they’ve responded. The worst that has followed a loss in the league over that period has been a draw in the next match. Never another defeat. Never a sequence.

That record is now on the line in Buraidah.

Al-Hilal arrive at Al-Taawoun’s home ground still sitting on 15 points, top of the Saudi Roshn League table on goal difference ahead of Al-Nassr and Al-Qadsiah, who trail in second and third. The margin is thin. The pressure is not.

Lose again, and the “curse” talk returns in full voice. Respond with a result, and the champions-in-waiting narrative gathers pace once more.

For a club of Al-Hilal’s size, this isn’t just about three points. It’s about proving that what happened five years ago belongs to another era.