Syndicated reporting provided by Stats Perform and reviewed by the SoccerNews editorial team.
After Gabriel Martinelli got his Al-Hilal career up and running with a hat-trick in Saturday’s 6-0 rout of Al-Taawoun, Simone Inzaghi hailed the Brazilian for his rapid adaptation.
Martinelli made a £60.1m switch to the Saudi Pro League before the transfer window slammed shut earlier this month, but his Al-Hilal debut was a disappointing 2-0 loss at home to Neom.
The Brazilian’s second game went far better, though, as he plundered three of Al-Hilal’s six goals at Al Taawoun Club Stadium to help them go top of the table.
Martinelli had secured the match ball by the 50th minute and was withdrawn in the 54th, with fellow summer signing Ollie Watkins also scoring twice and laying on two assists – one for Martinelli and one for substitute Sultan Mandash.
With no more Pro League games to be played prior to the international break, due to the Asian Champions League taking centre stage next week, Inzaghi was pleased to see Martinelli contribute to an important victory.
“Martinelli arrived at a late stage and took part in only one training session before the Neom fixture. He is a player of a high level, and we substituted him to give him a rest,” he said.
— AlHilal Saudi Club (@Alhilal_EN) September 12, 2026
“We played an excellent match at a high level and with great focus. Another task awaits us in the Asian competition, and it is good to be in first place before the international break.
“We played with the same group that took part against Neom, but we had a longer rest period than before, and so we prepared well for this fixture.”
Al-Hilal are one point clear of Al-Ittihad – who they face in their next league game on October 10 – at the summit, with Al-Nassr two points adrift in third.
Cristiano Ronaldo and company could have joined Inzaghi’s men on 18 points, but they were held to a 1-1 draw by Al-Khaleej, with Abdullah Al-Hamdan cancelling out Omar Mascarell’s opener to rescue a point for Ange Postecoglou’s team.
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