Benzema leads Al Ittihad to Saudi Cup win
Al Ittihad's Karim Benzema scored twice to lead his side to a 3-1 victory over Al Qadsiah in the Saudi Cup final on Friday as they completed the domestic double.
Laurent Blanc's side dominated the game to win the cup for the 10th time, while Al Qadsiah finished the game with 10 men after Ezequiel Fernandez was sent off in the 81st minute.
Moussa Diaby nearly put Al Ittihad ahead but missed a chance in the 21st minute.
Al Qadsiah's former Spain defender Nacho escaped conceding a penalty when the ball touched his hand, but the referee didn't award a spot kick despite a VAR check in the 32nd minute.
Benzema opened the scoring for the Saudi Pro League champions, using his chest to convert Steven Bergwijn's precise cross 11 minutes before the interval.
Houssem Aouar made it 2-0 in the 43rd minute by following up after Koen Casteels saved a header from Benzema.
Al Qadsiah's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang reduced the deficit from the penalty spot in first-half stoppage time.
Benzema, who won the SPL Player of the Season, hit the bar after the break, but Al Ittihad were more cautious as they looked to maintain their lead.
Al Ittihad keeper Predrag Rajkovic saved Aubameyang's shot in the 80th minute and Al Qadsiah suffered a big blow when Ezequiel Fernandez received a second yellow card, forcing them to play with 10 men for the final minutes. Then 2022 Ballon d'Or winner Benzema scored his side's third goal, firing in Diaby's low cross in stoppage time, before Aubameyang's shot hit the woodwork. — Reuters
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Observer
7 hours ago
- Observer
Stark wins US Women's Open golf tournament title
Maja Stark has won tournaments around the world, but a professional victory in the United States eluded her. Now she's a US Women's Open champion. Stark carded an even-par 72 to win the second major of the year by two shots on Sunday at Erin Hills in Erin, Wis. Stark led the championship by one stroke through 54 holes and outlasted World No. 1 Nelly Korda, who got within a shot of the lead before petering out on the back nine. Stark posted a 7-under-par 281 for the week. Korda (71) tied for second with Japan's Rio Takeda (72) at 5 under, and South Korea's Hye-Jin Choi posted a 68 to claim a share of fourth place at 4 under with countrywoman Mao Saigo (73) and China's Ruoning Yin (70). Korda had a 2-under front nine to get to 6 under for the championship. Stark was nursing a one-stroke lead over Korda when she birdied No. 11 from 14 feet. Korda bogeyed the par-3 13th and birdied the next hole, but only after an eagle opportunity slid by. Stark made a two-putt birdie at No. 14 to get to 9 under and had enough cushion to absorb bogeys at the difficult Nos. 17 and 18, where she missed each fairway. The 25-year-old has six wins to her name on the Ladies European Tour. One of those, the ISPS Handa World Invitational in Northern Ireland, was co-sanctioned by the LPGA and earned her a tour card in 2022. Before Sunday, the highlight of Stark's minimal major resume was placing second to Korda at the 2024 Chevron Championship. Korda came up short of a would-be third major victory. She earned her best finish at a US Women's Open and her third top-10. Julia Lopez Ramirez of Spain played in the final pairing with Stark after shooting a 68 on Saturday. She struggled from the outset and finished 1 over for the event after a triple-bogey 8 on the final hole destined her to a score of 79. — Reuters
Observer
a day ago
- Observer
Paul reaches French Open quarters
PARIS: World number 12 Tommy Paul blitzed Australian Alexei Popyrin 6-3 6-3 6-3 on Sunday to become the first American male player to reach the French Open quarter-finals in 22 years. Paul matched Andre Agassi's run from 2003 after Americans on Saturday equalled a 40-year-old record with five women and three men in round four of the clay court Grand Slam. Paul also became the only active American player to reach the last eight on all three surfaces after his 2023 Australian Open semi-final and 2024 Wimbledon quarter-final runs. "I am very happy to get a straight sets win. I have been playing some very long matches so that felt really good," Paul, who spent almost 11 hours on court in his previous three rounds, which included two five-setters, said in a post-match interview. Tommy Paul in action during his 4th round match. — Reuters "Shorter matches like this help a lot." The 28-year-old found himself a break down after the first game, before immediately resetting the match's trajectory, breaking straight back to correct his early setback. Popyrin, a former junior champion in Paris like Paul, had not lost a set in his run to the fourth round but found himself a set down when he was broken again, with Paul's superior movement and clinical shot-making handing him the first set. The Australian, constantly turning to his box to express his frustration, was clearly rattled with Paul attacking at every chance and with Popyrin's second serve proving a weakness. He was broken again at the start of the second set with Paul now firing on all cylinders and hitting winners at will. The American added another break to land the set before going 3-0 up in the third and finishing off his 25th-seeded opponent in less than two hours. He will now face either second seed and defending champion Carlos Alcaraz or fellow American Ben Shelton. — Reuters
Observer
2 days ago
- Observer
Benzema leads Al Ittihad to Saudi Cup win
Al Ittihad's Karim Benzema scored twice to lead his side to a 3-1 victory over Al Qadsiah in the Saudi Cup final on Friday as they completed the domestic double. Laurent Blanc's side dominated the game to win the cup for the 10th time, while Al Qadsiah finished the game with 10 men after Ezequiel Fernandez was sent off in the 81st minute. Moussa Diaby nearly put Al Ittihad ahead but missed a chance in the 21st minute. Al Qadsiah's former Spain defender Nacho escaped conceding a penalty when the ball touched his hand, but the referee didn't award a spot kick despite a VAR check in the 32nd minute. Benzema opened the scoring for the Saudi Pro League champions, using his chest to convert Steven Bergwijn's precise cross 11 minutes before the interval. Houssem Aouar made it 2-0 in the 43rd minute by following up after Koen Casteels saved a header from Benzema. Al Qadsiah's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang reduced the deficit from the penalty spot in first-half stoppage time. Benzema, who won the SPL Player of the Season, hit the bar after the break, but Al Ittihad were more cautious as they looked to maintain their lead. Al Ittihad keeper Predrag Rajkovic saved Aubameyang's shot in the 80th minute and Al Qadsiah suffered a big blow when Ezequiel Fernandez received a second yellow card, forcing them to play with 10 men for the final minutes. Then 2022 Ballon d'Or winner Benzema scored his side's third goal, firing in Diaby's low cross in stoppage time, before Aubameyang's shot hit the woodwork. — Reuters
