AUSTRALIA: While there will naturally be a lot of focus on the see-sawing title battle between heavyweights Al-Ittihad and Al-Hilal, there is another heavyweight battle looming over the final months of the Saudi Pro League season.
This one involves two of the league’s greatest players, and two greats of Arab football, battling for the ultimate personal accolade — the title of the league’s all-time leading goal scorer.
For the last few years, that mantle has sat with Syria’s Omar Al-Somah — now at Al-Orobah — who assumed it from Nasser Al-Shamrani, with 144 goals during his eight-year stint with Al-Ahli.
But looming ever larger in recent months has been Morocco’s Abderrazak Hamdallah, now onto his third club with Al-Shabab. Before the season, he trailed his Syrian counterpart by 15 goals and made it known he had Al-Somah’s record in his sights.
“I’m very happy with what I’ve done so far,” he said on MBC’s popular “Action with Waleed” show in September.
“Of course, I’d be a lot happier if I continue to work hard, add value to my club Al-Shabab first, and why not break the record. It’s a major record and a significant number of goals, and Omar Al-Somah deserves praise for raising the bar so high.
“It’s not an easy record to break, but I’ll take it one game at a time, first to help Al-Shabab, then for my personal ambitions. I will enjoy the journey, and if it’s meant to be, it will happen.”
While their exploits may have been overshadowed in recent years by the arrival of a bevy of world-class talent, including Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema, their battle offers a timely reminder of the world that existed before the Ronaldo-led transformation of the league.
Between the pair, they have won six of the last 10 Golden Boot awards and have the incredible record of each scoring double digits in every season in which they have played in the Kingdom.
Either is worthy of the mantle, and now, after a surprise January move, they will duke it out head-to-head for the title.
Al-Somah, perhaps with a sense of inevitability watching Hamdallah bang in the goals for Al-Shabab and loom in on his record, made a surprise return to the SPL with relegation-threatened Al-Orobah after three years spent in Qatar.
Despite his denials, suggesting he was content regardless, no doubt the Syrian was swayed just a little by trying to keep his record intact, even admitting doing so will “motivate” him for the rest of the season. Players will deny it — it’s a team sport, after all — but these personal accolades do mean something and it’s only natural for a player to want to “protect his patch.”
Upon his return, Al-Somah said: “I’m thrilled to return to the Saudi League. I spent eight or nine years with Al-Ahli in one city, now it’s different.
“I have said this before, if God wills it, I’ll succeed in extending the record. If not, I’ll accept it. Whatever comes from God, I’ll be content with it. Whoever it is — Abderrazak or anybody else — all players here are stars.
“The number speaks for itself. I’ll do my best on the field. If I score more, it’s God’s will. This will motivate me, but I’m already satisfied with my career.
“I’ve had great years in the Saudi League with Al-Ahli. I’ve won championships. That’s enough for me, regardless of being the all-time top scorer in the Saudi League.”
Ever since he arrived back in the Kingdom, the two have been trading blows — in the metaphorical sense.
In his first two games in his new colors, Al-Somah drew blanks as Al-Orobah failed to find the net in a 0-0 draw with Al-Taawoun and a 2-0 loss to Al-Ahli.
At the same time, Hamdallah bagged another three goals with a brace against Al-Fayha and a solitary goal against Ettifaq to close in on the record even further.
By the time Round 19 came around, the margin had been closed to just six goals, and Hamdallah piled the pressure on with a stunning hat-trick in a 5-1 win over Al-Khaleej to get within touching distance.
But just 24 hours later, Al-Somah responded in fine style with a brace of his own, showing class is indeed permanent, in a 4-2 win over the struggling Al-Wehda to slightly ease the gap back out to five.
On the weekend just gone, Hamdallah, who once again played a day before Al-Somah, drew a blank, for the first time in four games, as Al-Shabab suffered a narrow 3-2 defeat to heavy-hitters Al-Qadsiah.
The Syrian capitalized, and in a 2-0 win for Al-Orobah over Al-Okhdood, managed to find the net again to make it three goals in two games and get the margin back out to six goals — 147 to 141.
The battle for supremacy has become part of the weekly narrative surrounding the league and the players, fully aware of what is at stake, will be feeling the pressure.
All eyes, therefore, are on the clash between Al-Shabab and Al-Orobah on March 14. To continue the boxing analogies, at the moment they are simply shadow boxing, as they take it in turns to get one over their rival.
But in that game, the two heavyweights will come together for the first time in almost exactly three years. Their last individual clash came on March 12, 2021, when Hamdallah scored the winner in a 2-1 win for Al-Nassr over Al-Ahli. Al-Somah scored the solitary goal for Al-Ahli.
Overall, the ledger stands at 4-3 in favor of Al-Somah. With all eyes on Al-Shabab Club Stadium next month, can either land the knockout blow?
