Al-Qadisiyah and Ettifaq played out a 3:3 draw at Prince Mohammed bin Fahd Stadium on Thursday evening, in the seventh round of the Saudi Pro League. The result leaves the hosts third on 15 points while Ettifaq remain eighth on 10 after six games.
And here's the thing about the opening exchanges — they were frantic. Julián Quiñones gave Al-Qadisiyah the lead in the twelfth minute, then Mateo Retegui doubled it three minutes later. Ettifaq responded almost immediately, with Bersant Celina pulling one back in the twenty-sixth.
By then you could see the pattern. Al-Qadisiyah dominated possession at 55 per cent, made 95 passes into the final third compared to Ettifaq's 69, and created five big chances against two. But the visitors were clinical when it mattered. Álvaro Medrán equalised for Ettifaq in the sixty-fourth minute, just as Mohammed Abu Al-Shamat and Musab Al-Juwayr came off for the hosts.
The second half wore on with both sides searching for a winner. Mohammed Hamad Al-Qahtani restored Al-Qadisiyah's lead in the eighty-first minute, only for Jordan Larsson to level things eight minutes later. Nine yellow cards were shown in total, with Ettifaq taking five to the hosts' three.
To be fair, the statistics tell a story that doesn't quite match the scoreboard. Al-Qadisiyah generated 2.31 expected goals to Ettifaq's 0.88, yet they shared the points. The hosts had 10 shots inside the penalty area against six, but their accuracy sat at just 23 per cent. Ettifaq, meanwhile, managed 33 per cent accuracy from four shots on target.
The draw ended Al-Qadisiyah's run of four consecutive victories. They had beaten Al-Ahli 3:2, Al-Dairyah 2:0, Al-Faisaly 3:1 and Al-Suqour 2:0 before that narrow 0:1 defeat to Al-Ittihad. Ettifaq's recent form was more mixed — a goalless draw against Al-Faisaly, a 1:0 win over Abha, then losses to Al-Dairyah and Al-Nassr.
