Overview
Al Shorta are the current Iraqi league champions. Last season, they won 26 out of 38 matches, earning 87 points and finishing 5 points clear of second-placed Al Quwa Al Jawiya.
Al Shorta are in impressive form with 26 consecutive unbeaten matches, including 19 wins and 7 draws. Al Shorta's last defeat was in February this year. They have also not lost at home since December 2023 and are on an 8-match winning streak.
They are considered a miniature Iraq team with a series of national players in the squad such as Hussein Ali, Mohanad Ali, Manaf Younis and Ahmed Farhan.
However, compared to Al Nassr's star-studded squad, Al Shorta's personnel are clearly still inferior. The Saudi Arabian team possesses world-class stars such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Sadio Mane, Brozovic, Laporte, Simakan and Otavio.
Notably, since the Iraqi national championship ended in mid-July, Al Shorta has not played an official match. This could be a disadvantage for coach Ahmed Salah's team.
In contrast, Al Nassr have played 3 matches in the Saudi Pro League with an unbeaten record (1 win, 2 draws). Before that, they also eliminated Al Taawoun to reach the semi-finals of the Saudi Arabian Super Cup but lost to Al Hilal in the final.
In the only previous confrontation between the two teams, which took place in the semi-finals of the Arab Club Champions Cup 2023, Ronaldo scored to help Al Nassr defeat Al Shorta. Even though CR7 could not play in this match, Al Nassr is still rated higher than its opponent.
Human resources situation
Al Shorta are almost at their strongest squad to host Al Nassr at home.
On the other side of the front line, the Saudi Pro League representative has different concerns about personnel. Sami Al-Najei is still open to playing after recovering from a knee injury. Coach Luis Castro will also be without the services of number 1 star Ronaldo due to a viral fever.
Expected lineup:
Al Shorta: Basil, Falsal, Karar, Tekreet, Yahia, Farrhan, Soumana, Niang, Khudhair, Abdul, Rustom.
Al Nassr: Bento, Al Ghanam, Simakan, Laporte, Al Najdi, Al-Khaibari, Otavio, Brozovic, Ghareeb, Talisca, Mane.
The match between Al Shorta and Al Nassr takes place at 23:00 on September 16 (Vietnam time).
