Hassane Keita helped Al-Ittihad thrash the Saudi Premier League champion Al-Hilal 4-1 in the first leg semifinal match of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques' Cup for Champions here Thursday. The victory is like an early qualification for the Jeddah giant to the final match, since Al-Hilal will need to win the second leg match with a four-goal margin and that too in Al-Ittihad's backyard. Captain Mohammed Noor shot Ittihad into the lead in the 18th minute from the spot when Hilal's Tavares tried to stop Keita in the box and the referee did not hesitate in awarding Ittihad the penalty. Keita, who was a continuous headache to the Hilal defenders, was shown the yellow card by the referee in the 51st minute warn he faked a fall in the box. But that did not seem to deter him since the Ghanaian striker scored Ittihad's second goal on a perfect pass from Noor in the 68th minute. Hilal coach Kozmin brought in Mohammed Shalhoub in place of Abdullah Al-Zouri and the change worked. Hilal's players started making moves on the rival goal and it was in the 79th minute that Abdul Aziz Al-Khathran's shot from outside the box deceived the advancing Ittihad keeper, Tayseer Al-Nitaif, for the Riyadh club's first goal. The goal forced Ittihad to think its game through. Midfielders Noor and Manaf Abu Shogair exchanged positions so that Noor may get more space and thereby support Keita. This change worked for Ittihad and an 81st minute Noor's curving hit found Keita, who made no mistake and put it into Mohammed Al-Deayea's goal to lift Ittihad 3-1. Keita again made the most of the last minute mess in the Hilal 18-yard area to score Ittihad's fourth and his own third goal of the night. At the end of the match Hilal players gathered around the Spanish referee and criticized his decisions. Majed Al-Marshadi displayed his anger and was shown the red card. Al-Ittihad had seemed as the team to beat from the start. Chico and Manaf Abu Shogair displayed an excellent game in the midfield. Hilal did not start with Internationals Nawaf Al-Tamiyat, Mohammed Al-Shalhoub and Khaled Aziz. The Riyadh club also missed the services of Tariq Al-Ta'ib, who is serving a four-match ban. Friday's match will see Al-Shabab take on Al-Hazm in Riyadh in the first leg match of their semifinal. PSG banned Paris St. Germain has been banned from defending the League Cup next season after some of its fans unfolded an abusive banner during this season's League Cup final, the French League (LFP) said on Wednesday. PSG, already in the Ligue 1 relegation zone, could have been punished with a points deduction. Instead, it remains on 38 points and 18th in the 20-team top flight. __
