Al-Nassr will go into its Round 28 meeting with Al-Okhdood still leading the Saudi Pro League, but without Inigo Martinez and with two other key fitness calls unresolved. The league leaders sat on 70 points and held a five-point advantage over Al-Hilal before Saturday’s Matchday.
Martinez was absent from the upcoming clash as he continued to recover from a hamstring injury and had not yet returned to full group training. According to Arriyadiyah, he had been limited to light running and individual work, leaving his availability for the weekend out of reach for now.
That uncertainty is shared by Kingsley Coman and Joao Felix, who were both still undergoing rehabilitation and had not been fully integrated into group training. Coman had resumed individual training after partial participation, but a final decision on his place in the squad was expected closer to Saturday’s Matchday. Felix remained on a structured recovery program.
There was better news elsewhere in the squad. Mohamed Simakan had returned to fitness, and Abdullah Al-Hamdan was also back available. Al-Nassr arrived in stronger form after a commanding win over Al-Najma, while Al-Hilal dropped points and Al-Qadisiyah slipped to defeat, results that helped preserve the club’s position at the top.
The matchup lands in the middle of a tight title race, and Al-Nassr is trying to defend an edge that remains narrow enough to feel fragile. The club is also managing multiple fitness issues at a decisive stage of the season, which means the margin for error in al akhdoud vs al-nassr is smaller than the table might suggest.
