Al Ahli Saudi F.C.–Ittihad F.C. rivalry

The Jeddah Derby, also called the Derby of the Mermaid,[1] is the name given to football matches contested between Al-Ahli and Al-Ittihad, both from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. For more than 70 years, it used to be the longest running top-flight derby in Saudi Arabian football. The rivalry started in 1951 and is considered to be one of the strongest and most viewed matches in Asia and the Arab world.[2] The rivalry was halted when Al-Ahli were relegated in 2022 to the first division league for the first time in their history.

Jeddah Derby
Other namesDerby of the Mermaid
LocationJeddah, Saudi Arabia
Teams
First meetingAl-Ahli 0–0 Al-Ittihad
Friendly
(1937)
Latest meetingAl-Ahli 3–4 Al-Ittihad
Pro League
(26 February 2022)
StadiumsKing Abdullah Sports City
Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium
Al-Saban Stadium
Statistics
Meetings total187
Most winsAl-Ahli (70)
Top scorerSaeed Ghurab (17)
Largest victoryAl-Ittihad 7–0 Al-Ahli
Regional League
(2 May 1960)

History

The first-ever match between these two teams was in 1951. The two teams played a friendly match in Al-Saban Stadium in Jeddah which ended 0–0.[3] In 1958, both teams met each other in the final of the Crown Prince Cup in what would be the first final between these two teams. Over 12,000 fans attended the match at the Al-Saban Stadium in Jeddah. Al-Ittihad defeated Al-Ahli 3–2 to lift their first Crown Prince Cup trophy. The first league match between the two sides was during the first season of the Saudi League, the 1976–77 season.[4] Al-Ahli won the match 2–0 thanks to goals from Saad Al-Harbi and Idris Adam. Saeed Ghurab is the top scorer of the derby with 20 goals, 17 for Al-Ittihad and 3 for Al-Ahli. The clubs have met each other in 12 finals, with Al-Ittihad winning 7 and Al-Ahli winning 5.

Official match results

As of 11 February 2021. Source:[5][6]

Dates are in dd/mm/yyyy form.

  • SF = Semi-finals
  • QF = Quarter-finals
  • R16 = Round of 16
  • R32 = Round of 32
  • GS = Group stage
  • R1 = Round 1
  • R2 = Round 2

  Al-Ahli win   Draw   Al-Ittihad win

1 1987 King Cup Second Round match won 4–3 on penalties by Al-Ittihad after both teams were tied 0–0.
2 2005–06 Crown Prince Cup quarter-final won 4–2 on penalties by Al-Ahli after both teams were tied 1–1.
3 2011 King Cup Final won 4–2 on penalties by Al-Ahli after both teams were tied 0–0.

Records

Most goals in a match
  • 10 goals on 24 October 1966 Al-Ittihad 8–2 Al-Ahli
  • 8 goals on 5 October 1987 Al-Ahli 4–4 Al-Ittihad
  • 7 goals on 2 May 1960 Al-Ittihad 7–0 Al-Ahli
  • 7 goals on 15 October 1968 Al-Ahli 4–3 Al-Ittihad
  • 7 goals on 10 April 1983 Al-Ahli 5–2 Al-Ittihad
  • 7 goals on 26 February 2022 Al-Ittihad 4–3 Al-Ahli

Al-Ahli biggest wins

* Four or more goals difference, OR Al-Ahli scored five or above

  • Al-Ahli 5–1 Al-Ittihad on 13 November 1965
  • Al-Ahli 4–0 Al-Ittihad on 18 October 1969
  • Al-Ahli 4–0 Al-Ittihad on 3 July 1973
  • Al-Ahli 5–0 Al-Ittihad on 28 May 1976
  • Al-Ahli 4–0 Al-Ittihad on 8 June 1979
  • Al-Ahli 5–2 Al-Ittihad on 10 April 1983

Al-Ittihad biggest wins

* Four or more goals difference, OR Al-Ittihad scored five or above

  • Al-Ittihad 7–0 Al-Ahli on 2 May 1960
  • Al-Ittihad 8–2 Al-Ahli on 24 October 1966

Highest Attendance

* 45,000 or above

Statistics

Statistics as of 26 February 2022.[7][8][9]

Matches Al-Ahli
wins		 Draws Al-Ittihad
wins
Saudi League
 96303333
Total league matches
 96303333
Total matches 212726773

Top scorers

Below is the list of players who have scored at least four goals in official meetings.

Position Name Team Goals
1 Saudi Arabia Saeed Ghurab Al-Ittihad (16) Al-Ahli (3) 19
2 Saudi Arabia Hussam Abo Dawood Al-Ahli 14
Saudi Arabia Talal Al-Meshal Al-Ahli (12) Al-Ittihad (2)
4 Saudi Arabia Suleiman Mattar Al-Ahli 13
Brazil Sérgio Ricardo Al-Ittihad (10) Al-Ahli (3)
Syria Omar Al Somah Al-Ahli
7 Saudi Arabia Hamzah Idris Al-Ittihad 11
8 Saudi Arabia Amin Dabo Al-Ahli 9
9 Saudi Arabia Salah Al-Muwallad Al-Ittihad 8
Saudi Arabia Mohammed Noor Al-Ittihad
Saudi Arabia Abdullah Fawal Al-Ittihad

Players who played for both clubs

Source:[10][11]

Al-Ahli then Al-Ittihad
Al-Ittihad then Al-Ahli

References
  1. "دربي العروس».. بين عقدة وصدارة".
  2. - Daralakhbar:Derby of Jeddah
  3. "أرقام تاريخية من ديربي جدة بين الأهلي والاتحا".
  4. "ديربي جدة.. الإتحاد يسعى لإنهاء السبع العجاف والأهلي يتمسك بالمنافسة".
  5. "تاريخ لقاءات الاهلي والاتحاد".
  6. "تاريخ لقاءات".
  7. "Statistics".
  8. "إحصائية مواجهات ( الاهلي و الاتحاد )". Archived from the original on 2017-10-22.
  9. "أرقام ومفارقات ومعلومات لأول مرة عن ديربي جدة".
  10. "24 لاعباً ارتدوا قميص الاتحاد والأهلي".
  11. ""مكة" ترصد أبرز تنقلات اللاعبين بين الأهلي والاتحاد خلال 60 عاما".


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.