Hilal and Al-Ittihad continued their race for the top spot in a busy week of the Saudi Premier League after recording precious victories Wednesday. Riyadh side Al-Hilal returned home with all the three points after beating Al-Ahli 1-0 at the Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium in Jeddah. Al-Ittihad, meanwhile, blanked Al-Shabab 4-0 at the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh. Another four matches were played in different regions but they slightly affected the overall ranking. Al-Hilal maintained the top spot with 43 points, three ahead of the second placed Al-Ittihad. Christian Wilhelmsson of Sweden sealed the only goal for Hilal as he blasted from long range, five minutes after the kick-off. Al-Ahli which won 2-1 against its city rival Al-Ittihad last week missed striker Malek Al-Hawsawi and suspended defender Waleed Al-Jizani. In Riyadh, Naif Hazazi scored a brace in the first half (24th and 43rd minutes) before Sultan Al-Nomari put the Jeddah side 3-0 in the 46th minute. Al-Shabab tried to recover after the break but the well-controlled midfield saw Al-Ittihad underline the score sheet with a fourth goal through Al-Nomari in the dying time. Despite the defeat, Al-Shabab stayed third with 30 points, 13 points away from Al-Hilal. In another match in Riyadh, Rayan Bilal scored in the 16th minute to help Al-Nasr defeat Al-Raed at the Prince Faisal Bin Fahd Stadium. Al-Nasr stays sixth just one point behind Al-Ahli which has 25 points while Qassim's side Al-Raed remained in the 10th spot with 12 points. Al-Hazm advanced to the eighth place in the ranking after a 3-0 victory over Al-Watani of Tabuk in Al-Rass. Ahmed Minawer put the home side ahead after 33 minutes before Safwan Al-Moualad doubled Al-Hazm lead ten minutes after the break. Abdullah Ameen sealed the win in the 64th minute to edge Tabuk's only club to the bottom of the league on nine points. Elsewhere in Asir region, host Abha recorded its second win in the league by beating the fourth-placed Al-Ittifaq 1-0 at the Prince Sultan Sports City, thanks to the 73rd minute goal by Mohammed Al-Amri. In the last match of the week, Najran drew 2-2 with Al-Wehdah in a dramatic match in Najran where Abdul Aziz Al-Dosari put the visitor Al-Wehdah ahead in the 13th minute before Saleh Dwes equalized for Najran. After the break, Moroccan striker regained Al-Wehdah lead in the 64th minute just two minutes before Brazilian Wilson Antonio drew level the game. Al-Wehdah is seventh with 20 points while Najran (15) comes ninth. __
