Benzema leads Al-Ittihad to Saudi Cup win and domestic double
May 30 (Reuters) - Al-Ittihad's Karim Benzema scored twice to lead his side to a 3-1 victory over Al-Qadsiah in the Saudi Cup final on Friday as they completed the domestic double.
Laurent Blanc's side dominated the game to win the cup for the 10th time, while Al-Qadsiah finished the game with 10 men after Ezequiel Fernandez was sent off in the 81st minute.
Moussa Diaby nearly put Al-Ittihad ahead but missed a chance in the 21st minute.
Al-Qadsiah's former Spain defender Nacho escaped conceding a penalty when the ball touched his hand, but the referee didn't award a spot kick despite a VAR check in the 32nd minute.
Benzema opened the scoring for the Saudi Pro League champions, using his chest to convert Steven Bergwijn's precise cross 11 minutes before the interval.
Houssem Aouar made it 2-0 in the 43rd minute by following up after Koen Casteels saved a header from Benzema.
Al-Qadsiah's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang reduced the deficit from the penalty spot in first-half stoppage time.
Benzema, who won the SPL Player of the Season, hit the bar after the break, but Al-Ittihad were more cautious as they looked to maintain their lead.
Al-Ittihad keeper Predrag Rajkovic saved Aubameyang's shot in the 80th minute and Al-Qadsiah suffered a big blow when Ezequiel Fernandez received a second yellow card, forcing them to play with 10 men for the final minutes.
Then 2022 Ballon d'Or winner Benzema scored his side's third goal, firing in Diaby's low cross in stoppage time, before Aubameyang's shot hit the woodwork.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sky News
3 hours ago
- Sky News
US warplanes transit through UK as Trump considers striking Iran
Flight tracking data shows extensive movement of US military aircraft towards the Middle East in recent days, including via the UK. Fifty-two US military planes were spotted flying over the eastern Mediterranean towards the Middle East between Monday and Thursday. That includes at least 25 that passed through Chania airport, on the Greek island of Crete - an eight-fold increase in the rate of arrivals compared to the first half of June. The movement of military equipment comes as the US considers whether to assist Israel in its conflict with Iran. Of the 52 planes spotted over the eastern Mediterranean, 32 are used for transporting troops or cargo, 18 are used for mid-air refuelling and two are reconnaissance planes. Forbes McKenzie, founder of McKenzie Intelligence, says that this indicates "the build-up of warfighting capability, which was not [in the region] before". Sky's data does not include fighter jets, which typically fly without publicly revealing their location. An air traffic control recording from Wednesday suggests that F-22 Raptors are among the planes being sent across the Atlantic, while 12 F-35 fighter jets were photographed travelling from the UK to the Middle East on Wednesday. Many US military planes are passing through UK A growing number of US Air Force planes have been passing through the UK in recent days. Analysis of flight tracking data at three key air bases in the UK shows 63 US military flights landing between 16 and 19 June - more than double the rate of arrivals earlier in June. On Thursday, Sky News filmed three US military C-17A Globemaster III transport aircraft and a C-130 Hercules military cargo plane arriving at Glasgow's Prestwick Airport. Flight tracking data shows that one of the planes arrived from an air base in Jordan, having earlier travelled there from Germany. What does Israel need from US? Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on 15 March that his country's aim is to remove "two existential threats - the nuclear threat and the ballistic missile threat". Israel says that Iran is attempting to develop a nuclear bomb, though Iran says its nuclear facilities are only for civilian energy purposes. A US intelligence assessment in March concluded that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon. President Trump dismissed the assessment on Tuesday, saying: "I think they were very close to having one." Forbes McKenzie says the Americans have a "very similar inventory of weapons systems" to the Israelis, "but of course, they also have the much-talked-about GBU-57". The GBU-57 is a 30,000lb bomb - the largest non-nuclear bomb in existence. Mr McKenzie explains that it is "specifically designed to destroy targets which are very deep underground". Experts say it is the only weapon with any chance of destroying Iran's main enrichment site, which is located underneath a mountain at Fordow. Air-to-air refuelling could allow Israel to carry larger bombs Among the dozens of US aircraft that Sky News tracked over the eastern Mediterranean in recent days, more than a third (18 planes) were designed for air-to-air refuelling. "These are crucial because Israel is the best part of a thousand miles away from Iran," says Sky News military analyst Sean Bell. "Most military fighter jets would struggle to do those 2,000-mile round trips and have enough combat fuel." The ability to refuel mid-flight would also allow Israeli planes to carry heavier munitions, including bunker-buster bombs necessary to destroy the tunnels and silos where Iran stores many of its missiles. Satellite imagery captured on 15 June shows the aftermath of Israeli strikes on a missile facility near the western city of Kermanshah, which destroyed at least 12 buildings at the site. At least four tunnel entrances were also damaged in the strikes, two of which can be seen in the image below. Writing for Jane's Defence Weekly, military analyst Jeremy Binnie says it looked like the tunnels were "targeted using guided munitions coming in at angles, not destroyed from above using penetrator bombs, raising the possibility that the damage can be cleared, enabling any [missile launchers] trapped inside to deploy". "This might reflect the limited payloads that Israeli aircraft can carry to Iran," he adds. Penetrator bombs, also known as bunker-busters, are much heavier than other types of munitions and as a result require more fuel to transport. Israel does not have the latest generation of refuelling aircraft, Mr Binnie says, meaning it is likely to struggle to deploy a significant number of penetrator bombs. Israel has struck most of Iran's western missile bases Even without direct US assistance, the Israeli air force has managed to inflict significant damage on Iran's missile launch capacity. Sky News has confirmed Israeli strikes on at least five of Iran's six known missile bases in the west of the country. On Monday, the IDF said that its strategy of targeting western launch sites had forced Iran to rely on its bases in the centre of the country, such as Isfahan - around 1,500km (930 miles) from Israel. Among Iran's most advanced weapons are three types of solid-fuelled rockets fitted with highly manoeuvrable warheads: Fattah-1, Kheibar Shekan and Haj Qassam. The use of solid fuel makes these missiles easy to transport and fast to launch, while their manoeuvrable warheads make them better at evading Israeli air defences. However, none of them are capable of striking Israel from such a distance. Iran is known to possess five types of missile capable of travelling more than 1,500km, but only one of these uses solid fuel - the Sijjil-1. On 18 June, Iran claimed to have used this missile against Israel for the first time. Iran's missiles have caused significant damage Iran's missile attacks have killed at least 24 people in Israel and wounded hundreds, according to the Israeli foreign ministry. The number of air raid alerts in Israel has topped 1,000 every day since the start of hostilities, reaching a peak of 3,024 on 15 June. Iran has managed to strike some government buildings, including one in the city of Haifa on Friday. And on 13 June, in Iran's most notable targeting success so far, an Iranian missile impacted on or near the headquarters of Israel's defence ministry in Tel Aviv. Most of the Iranian strikes verified by Sky News, however, have hit civilian targets. These include residential buildings, a school and a university. On Thursday, one missile hit the Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba, southern Israel's main hospital. More than 70 people were injured, according to Israel's health ministry. Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said that Iran had struck a nearby technology park containing an IDF cyber defence training centre, and that the "blast wave caused superficial damage to a small section" of the hospital. However, the technology park is in fact 1.2km away from where the missile struck. Photos of the hospital show evidence of a direct hit, with a large section of one building's roof completely destroyed. Iran successfully struck the technology park on Friday, though its missile fell in an open area, causing damage to a nearby residential building but no casualties. Israel has killed much of Iran's military leadership It's not clear exactly how many people Israel's strikes in Iran have killed, or how many are civilians. Estimates by human rights groups of the total number of fatalities exceed 600. What is clear is that among the military personnel killed are many key figures in the Iranian armed forces, including the military's chief of staff, deputy head of intelligence and deputy head of operations. Key figures in the powerful Revolutionary Guard have also been killed, including the militia's commander-in-chief, its aerospace force commander and its air defences commander. On Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that US assistance was not necessary for Israel to win the war. "We will achieve all our objectives and hit all of their nuclear facilities," he said. "We have the capability to do that." 3:49 Forbes McKenzie says that while Israel has secured significant victories in the war so far, "they only have so much fuel, they only have so many munitions". "The Americans have an ability to keep up the pace of operations that the Israelis have started, and they're able to do it for an indefinite period of time." Additional reporting by data journalist Joely Santa Cruz and OSINT producers Freya Gibson, Lina-Sirine Zitout and Sam Doak.
Daily Mail
8 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Major twist in Paul Pogba transfer battle as 'new club enters race' for former Man Utd midfielder as he returns from 18-month doping ban
Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba is reportedly being targeted by Saudi side Al-Ittihad who hope to beat Monaco to the Frenchman's signature. The midfielder has held discussion with Monaco ahead of his return to football after his 18-month drugs suspension. The free agent World Cup winner had appeared to nearing a move to the Ligue 1 side with a two-year contract proposal on the table. Pogba saw his initial four-year drug ban cut to 18 months in October 2024 and has been free to recommence his career since March. Discussions have been ongoing with image rights said to be amid a number of stumbling blocks in the way of a transfer to the Stade Louis II. But while Monaco chiefs remain confident, a deal may be complicated by increased Saudi interest. Al-Ittihad are hoping to sign the former Juventus midfielder, according to French outlet Foot Mercato. A move to the Saudi Arabian champions would see Pogba linking up with former France international team-mates Karim Benzema and N'Golo Kante. Monaco finished third in Ligue 1 last season and their offer of Champions League football could tempt Pogba, who is eyeing a return to the French national team ahead of the World Cup. Earlier this week, Pogba reunited with some former United team-mates at the Club World Cup. The 31-year-old jetted out to the States to catch up with some old friends in Miami as Boca Juniors took on Benfica. Taking to Instagram, Pogba, who captioned the photo: 'What a pleasure to see my friends!' shared a snap of himself and four other former United players who all play for the Argentine side. Sharing to his story and his 63million followers, Pogba stood in the middle of the group with his arms around two of the players. To his left was goalkeeper Sergio Romero, who played 61 times for United - 21 times alongside Pogba - between 2015 and 2021. To his right was forward Edinson Cavani. The former Paris Saint-Germain man played 59 times for United - 36 with Pogba - joining in 2020 and leaving in 2022. Next to Romero was Marcos Rojo. The centre back played for United for seven years, playing 48 times alongside the World Cup winner. The final man in the picture was Ander Herrera, who played alongside Pogba 84 times - and was sent off in the game despite not being on the pitch.
The Sun
8 hours ago
- The Sun
Terence Crawford says there is ‘nothing' Canelo Alvarez can do to beat him… even in a STREET fight
TERENCE CRAWFORD warned Canelo Alvarez there is nothing he can do to beat him - even in a STREET fight. The unbeaten American jumps two divisions to challenge for Canelo's undisputed super-middleweight world title on September 13 in Las Vegas. 4 Canelo once talked down the blockbuster bout - believing he had nothing to gain from beating a man who started his career at lightweight. So the Mexican great was probed on the damage a loss to two-time undisputed champ Crawford would have on his iconic record. But cool as ice Canelo, 34, replied: "He's not gonna beat me. Don't worry about it, he's not going to beat me. "I think this fight is going to be in the history books of boxing, for sure." Crawford, 37, snapped back: "For sure them belts are coming with me, they're coming home with me. "I'm taking them, and there ain't nothing you can do about it come fight night. I promise you. You see I'm different than all the others ones." Canelo - who has won titles all the way from 154lb to 175lb - countered: "You don't look different. Nothing different." Crawford has not returned since last August when he beat Israil Madrimov, 30, for WBA light-middleweight title. 4 CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS Meanwhile, Canelo regained his undisputed 168lb throne with victory over William Scull, 32, in May in Riyadh. He now headlines on Netflix at the Las Vegas Raiders' £1BILLION 65,000-seater stadium against Crawford - who says there is no way he loses to Canelo - in the ring or otherwise. Terence Crawford opens up on dinner with Canelo Alvarez ahead of 'biggest fight in 20 YEARS' He said: "Come on, man. You know what I do. "I don't have to talk about it, on the streets me against anybody, I ain't ever gonna say another man can whoop me. That's your answer there." But Canelo hit back: "We're not talking about the streets we're talking about boxing, the beautiful sport of boxing." 4
