Al-Okhdood 2-5 Al-Ittihad: Benzema nets perfect hat-trick in opening win

Al-Ittihad got their title defence off to a flying start in the Saudi Pro League as they routed Al-Okhdood 5-2 with Karim Benzema scoring a perfect hat-trick.

Benzema's treble, as well as a strike from Steven Bergwijn and an own goal from Saeed Al-Rubaie, secured Al-Ittihad the three points in emphatic fashion.

Benzema, who found the net on 21 occasions last term, scored his first inside four minutes, with Bergwijn adding a second three minutes later, after his free-kick took a fortuitous deflection.

While Al-Okhdood halved the deficit through Juan Sebastian Pedroza in the 27th minute, their hard work was undone two minutes later, as Al-Rubaie turned the ball into his own net when attempting to deny Mohamed Nayef. 

Benzema put the game out of sight six minutes after the restart with a sumptuous header, and while the hosts retorted with Pedroza getting his second, the Real Madrid icon wrapped up his hat-trick, slamming the ball past Samuel Portugal in the Al-Okhdood net.  

Al-Okhdood finished the game with 10 men, as Naif Asiri picked up his second yellow card with seven minutes of the 90 remaining.

The victory takes the champions level in the table with rivals Al-Hilal and Al-Nassr, both of whom opened their campaigns with three points on Friday. Al-Qadisiyah also made a winning start on Saturday, beating Al-Najma 3-1 with new signing Mateo Retegui netting twice.

Data Debrief: Benzema rampant in curtain-raiser

Prior to his opening day hat-trick, Benzema had gone scoreless in both of his season openers for Al-Ittihad, despite registering 11 attempts (three on target) and averaging 0.6 expected goals per match.

His last goal in a league opener came in LaLiga in 2021-22, when he netted twice for Madrid, against Alaves away from home.

Benzema hit Al-Okhdood for three despite only registering an expected goals (xG) total of 0.86, converting three of his five shots on target. 

Al-Ittihad are now on a run of four consecutive away victories in the Pro League dating back to last season, netting three goals in each match. This is the first time they have managed four straight away wins while scoring at least three goals since doing so between May and August 2023.