The Saudi Pro League is taking an early season breather with the first international break of the new campaign.
Heavyweights Al Hilal, Al Ittihad and Al Nassr occupy the top spots after seven matches, with only Al Ahli off the pace out of the kingdom's big four.
The gap between the haves and the have-nots remains stark, with the bottom six sides yet to register a victory between them, while promoted Abha prop up the rest with just two points on the board.
We pick out the main takeaways so far this season for the kingdom's top-flight.
Al Hilal's England raid pays off
Riyadh giants Al Hilal occupy top spot, having won six of their opening seven league games, banging in 23 goals along the way, despite seeing their 47-match unbeaten run ended by Neom.
Leading the charge for Hilal has been their trio of signings from the English Premier League – Crysencio Summerville, Gabriel Martinelli and Ollie Watkins – who have hit the ground running since moving to the Saudi capital.
There were eyebrows raised when Hilal paid Aston Villa £50 million for 30-year-old Watkins, but the England striker kicked off with a debut goal against Al Ahli, before scoring a double – and assisting another two – in the demolition of Al Taawoun.
That 6-0 battering also saw Martinelli – a £60m arrival from Arsenal – score his first goals since February as the Brazilian opened his SPL account with a hat-trick. Dutch winger Summerville, 24, moved from West Ham United – who were relegated from the English top-flight in May – for £60m and has two goals and three assists already.
“This is why I'm here,” said Martinelli, 25, after his treble. “I've said it from the beginning … I'll be there giving my best and trying my best for this badge.”
Postecoglou prickles in Ronaldo spotlight
Ange Postecoglou is quickly finding out what life is like working in the glare of Cristiano Ronaldo's spotlight at Riyadh's other big club.
The Australian had big shoes to fill after taking over at Al Nassr following the departure of Jorge Jesus, who had led the club to the first major trophy of the Ronaldo era.
Postecoglou – the 12th Nassr coach of the 2020s – started his reign with five consecutive wins across all competitions, scooping August's manager of the month award. One of those – a 3-2 victory over Al Ettifaq – saw Ronaldo, making his first start since the World Cup, hooked at a minute after half time.
“When I made the substitutions, including taking Ronaldo off, I believed the players coming on could make an impact,” said the manager, who was vindicated as his team fought back from 2-0 down.
But one victory in four matches followed, culminating in a 4-0 thrashing away to UAE double-winners Al Ain in the AFC Champions League Elite group phase. A prickly Postecoglou was involved in terse exchanges with reporters after that loss, particularly when Ronaldo's place in the team was called into question.
With a long season ahead, the fact the 61-year-old is bristling already does not bode well for Postecoglou, who was sacked from his last job at Nottingham Forest after 39 dismal days.
Pusic under pressure at Al Ahli
Another new manager feeling the early season heat is Marino Pusic at back-to-back Asian champions Al Ahli.
Matthias Jaissle, the man who guided Ahli to those two continental titles, left to take over at Saudi-owned Premier League side Newcastle United at the start of August.
Pusic, who was in charge at UAE Pro League side Al Jazira last season, was chosen as Jaissle's successor, but his spell in Jeddah has begun with three defeats in seven matches, leaving them in sixth place, six points behind leaders Hilal.
To make matters worse, Ahli were beaten 2-1 by South African side Mamelodi Sundowns in Pretoria on Saturday when victory would have left them one win away from taking on European champions Paris Saint-Germain in the Fifa Continental Cup final.
“We absolutely didn’t deserve to lose this game because the chances were for there for us,” insisted Croatian-Dutch coach Pusic. “But that’s football; if you don’t score you keep the opponent alive, and that’s what we did.”
Lacazette rolls back years with Neom
While Al Ahli striker Ivan Toney leads the Golden Boot race with 10 goals, another former Premier League striker continues to turn back the clock at surprise package Neom.
At 35, ex-Arsenal star Alexandre Lacazette may now be in the twilight of his career, but the Frenchman has made a big impression since joining the Tabuk Province club from Lyon in 2025.
He scored 11 goals in his first season, helping the SPL newcomers finish a respectable eighth place in what was their debut top-flight campaign under manager Christophe Galtier.
And Lacazette has continued his form into the new season, with his five goals key to Neom's rise to fifth in the table, just three points shy of top spot.
The high point so far came with Neom's statement 2-0 victory at Hilal – with Kalidou Koulibaly's own goal and Amadou Kone securing the points – which Galtier called "a historic result" for the club.
“I'm already very happy for my players, for the whole club, for all our fans," added the French coach.
