Ittifaq defeated its guest Al-Ittihad 2-1 in their postponed match of the Saudi Zain Professional League at Prince Mohammed Bin Fahd Stadium Tuesday. It was not only Al-Ittifaq which enjoyed the taste of victory over the title holder, but the league leader Al-Hilal (25 points) and Al-Shabab (22) also benefited from Al-Ittihad's failure to collect points. Mohammed Noor put Al-Ittihad in the lead in the 21st minute by heading in a Hicham Aboucherouane's cross. In the second half, Abdurrahman Al-Qahtani scored from the spot in the 59th minute after Al-Ittifaq striker Hamad Al-Hamad was brought down by Al-Ittihad defender Ahmed Hadeed. About 10 minutes later, Ittifaq striker Hussein Al-Nej'e scored the winning goal. The match witnessed aggressive performance from many members of both teams. Referee Abdurrahman Al-Amri flashed five cards at each team. Two of these were red shown to Al-Ittihad midfielders Mohammed Noor and Saud Kariri. Kariri was sent off in the 62nd minutes while Noor was red-carded in the 95th minute. Al-Ittihad is in the third place with 15 points with two matches in hand while Al-Ittifaq stays at the bottom with five points and one match in hand. __
