Calm Before the Storm: Inzaghi Maps Al Hilal’s Break Plan with a Zoom Lens

Roadmap and Rest: Inzaghi's Break Plan

Italian coach Simone Inzaghi has crafted a comprehensive blueprint to guide Al Hilal through the upcoming international break, aligning rest, training, and trial matches with Saudi national duties for 2026. He is weighing either an internal intra-squad scrimmage against a club's Under-21 side or a friendly to keep the squad sharp during the roughly 20-day pause.

Additionally, the coach granted six days of rest after the exciting 3-2 win over Nasaf in Tashkent, with training resuming on Monday.

Absences, Schedule, and Stakes

Fifteen players will be away on national-team duty during the break. Eight players are with the Saudi national team: Mohammed Al-Rubaei, Muteb Al-Harbi, Nasser Al-Dosari, Mohammed Kanoo, Ruben Neves, captain Salem Al-Dosari, Abdullah Raddif, and Abdullah Al-Hamdan. Ahmed Abu Rasin and Abdulkarim Drasi will miss action with the Olympic squad, alongside five foreign teammates: Kalidou Koulibaly, Yassine Bono, Ruben Neves, Theo Hernandez, and Yusuf Aktişik.

Looking ahead, Al Hilal faces October clashes on both domestic and continental fronts: the league trip to meet Al Etifaq in Dammam on Oct. 18 (round five), a visit to Al Ittihad on Oct. 24, and a home match against Al Shabab on Oct. 30 (round seven). They will also take on Al Sadd in the AFC Champions League on Oct. 21 and face Akhdood in the King’s Cup on Oct. 28 at Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Stadium in Najran.

Currently sixth in the Saudi Pro League with eight points (two wins, two draws), the team trails leaders by four points.

Results and Criticism
Since taking charge, Inzaghi steered the team to the Club World Cup knockout stage, with a 1-1 opener against Real Madrid, a goalless draw with Salzburg, a 2-0 win over Pachuca, and a spot in the knockout rounds. A historic 4-3 win over Manchester City followed, before a 2-1 exit to Flamengo. Upon returning from the World Cup break, Al Hilal skipped the Saudi Super Cup to avoid burnout and focus on league duties.

Despite the positives, criticism grows around a defense-first approach and reliance on individual brilliance, which some fans feel is out of step with the squad’s attacking depth. The pundits aren’t calling for a wrestling match with the horizon, but they are asking for a better balance between defense and attack as the season progresses.

Numbers
This season, Al Hilal is stacking up both gloriously bold and worrying stats. In the league, they’ve scored 10 goals (about 2.5 per game) while conceding six, showing a potent attack but some defensive gaps. In the AFC Champions League, the team has collected six points from two matches, with a 2-1 win over Al Duhail and a 3-2 triumph over Nasaf, underscoring their goal-spinning potential but calling for tighter backlines. Salem Al-Dawsari stands as the main attacking threat, supported by Ruben Neves’s midfield control, while Yassine Bono has been a crucial last line of defense. Critics argue that the team’s success hinges on better collective organization alongside standout individual performances.

Overall, Al Hilal possesses the talent to alter any given match, but the real challenge remains finding harmony between a stingy defense and a fireworks display in attack.