Al-Hilal refused to suffer its first loss in the Saudi Professional League this season, after snatching a fatal draw from its rival and host Al-Nasr (1-1) at Al-Awal Park Stadium this Friday evening in the top matches of the 32nd round of the competition.

Al-Nasr took the lead through Otavio Montero 23 seconds after the starting whistle in the fastest goal of the season, but Al-Hilal equalized through Aleksandar Mitrovic from a penalty kick in stoppage time for the second half.

Al-Hilal maintained its unbeaten record in the current season of the local competition after 29 wins and 3 draws, but its winning streak stopped after it reached 24 matches in a row.

Al-Zaeem is now only two matches away from achieving the league title without defeat for the second time in its history, and the third in the history of the Professional League (since 2008-2009).

The draw will not affect Al Hilal’s victory in the title, as the Blue Team won the competition after defeating Al Hazm 4-1 last Saturday in Round 31.

Al-Hilal raised its score to 90 points to maintain a 12-point difference with Al-Nasr, the second-place team, before the last two rounds.

Sudden strike

The match started quickly, and Otavio needed a few seconds to put the hosts ahead with a sudden missile shot, which reached the far left corner of Yassine Bounou’s goal, after he received a pass from Cristiano Ronaldo.

After 10 minutes, Otavio wanted to return the gift to Ronaldo after he played a perfect cross, which the Don met with a “volley” shot that passed near the right post.

Cristiano Ronaldo almost scored a goal in a wonderful way, when he headed over a cross from Sultan Al-Ghannam, but his ball was slightly above the crossbar.

Al-Nasr continued its threat to the goal, and Ronaldo wasted an easy opportunity in the 26th minute, as Sadio Mane's cross passed under his feet in a strange way.

Al Hilal regained its balance in the second half of the first half, and was able to keep pace with its host in possession, but it did not pose any significant threat to Ospina’s goal.

Blue Awakening

Al-Hilal entered the second half with a greater desire to achieve a draw, to maintain its unbeaten streak - at least - in the local competition.

The first real blue chance in the match came in the 52nd minute, when Saud Abdul Hamid sent a perfect cross, which Sergej Savic headed into the net from the outside.

Five minutes later, the Serbian star succeeded in scoring against Ospina after a cross from Michel, but the referee refused to award the goal due to Mohamed Al-Breik offside at the beginning of the attack.

Al-Hilal’s pressure increased after it felt the danger of suffering its first defeat in the league this season, as Michel threatened Al-Nasr’s goal with two shots, the first of which was deflected by Ospina for a corner kick, and the second passed near the post.

Aleksandar Mitrovic wasted one of the leader's most dangerous chances in the derby, after he rose high to divert Savic's cross towards the goal, but it went over the crossbar in the 78th minute.

Ronaldo responded a minute later with a more dangerous opportunity, as he received a cross inside the penalty area, and Bono shot it powerfully for a corner kick, before the Moroccan goalkeeper continued his effort to clear another header.

At a time when Al-Nasr fans were preparing to celebrate Al-Hilal’s first defeat, Al-Zaeem won a penalty kick after Saud was blocked by Mane, which Mitrovic converted into a fatal equaliser.