Al Hassan emerges as crucial cog in Al Nassr's quest for success | OneFootball

In the Capital Derby, he was a standout and got himself on the scoresheet.

He did so against Damac last week, providing another key contribution in another crucial win for Al Nassr.

And, on Saturday, against Yokohama F. Marinos in the quarter-final of the AFC Champions League Elite, again he shone as the Riyadh club secured passage to a third continental semi-final in five seasons.

But it wasn't captain Cristiano Ronaldo, nor decorated forward Sadio Mane. Nor even rising star Jhon Duran. In fact, it was none of Al Nassr’s superstar foreign contingent.

The man in question? Saudi Arabian midfielder Ali Al Hassan.

It seems harsh to call the 28-year-old a fringe player, but during the past near-three seasons Al Hassan had seen his game-time reduce as Al Nassr’s squad was beefed up with the likes of Marcelo Brozovic, Otavio and Mane.

In the two previous RSL campaigns, Al Hassan featured 40 times. Twenty-eight came as a substitute. Then, this season, all that changed.

Since Stefano Pioli came to the helm, replacing Luis Castro in the dugout earlier in the season, the Italian has taken a liking to the hard-working Saudi. Suddenly, Al Hassan has been thrust into the heart of the action.

Thus, he sits at the heart of Al Nassr’s quest for continental and domestic glory.

The Riyadh giants came into the finals of the AFC Champions League Elite, staged in Jeddah, as one of the most in-form teams of the eight remaining: they had lost once in their eight previous matches, winning four of their past five.

And they have Al Hassan, in large part, to thank for that.

It was the Al Fateh youth product’s stunning curling effort from outside the penalty area that gave Al Nassr the lead in the Capital Derby at Al Hilal at the beginning of this month, as last year’s runners-up snapped a four-year RSL drought against their fierce rivals.

Al Hassan’s sublime intervention provided the platform, not to mention the confidence and momentum, for Al Nassr to push on, both in the match and the title race.

Then last week, it was once more Al Hassan’s goal that put his team ahead against Damac in a game, without Ronaldo or Mane, that Al Nassr went on to triumph 3-2 to keep their top-two hopes alive.

Not only were those goals crucial in the context of their season, but they were also, remarkably, Al Hassan’s first in yellow since joining the club in 2020. Proving the old adage 'better late than never', they earned him back-to-back BSF Goal of the Week awards.

But it’s not just Al Hassan’s goals or general contribution where he has made an impact; it’s what his presence allows others to do in the game that is equally as beneficial.

With Al Hassan’s tireless work in midfield, it allows Brozovic the freedom to roam and play the role as conductor-in-chief. The Croatian is Al Nassr’s everywhere man, and therefore so important to how Pioli’s side plays.

Their play goes through the former Inter Milan star, which is why he is ranked third for passes in the 2024-25 RSL. However, Brozovic’s task has been made so much more straightforward because Al Hassan has slotted in seamlessly beside him.

While Brozovic is a roamer, operating across the pitch, a glance at the heat maps for Al Hassan portrays how he operates almost exclusively on the right-hand side of the pitch.

There, he offers cover for the likes of Otavio and Ayman Yahya, allowing them to get forward in advanced positions knowing they have the defensive cover behind should things go awry.

It’s an at-times unheralded part in the Al Nassr playbook, but the type of effort that doesn’t go unnoticed or unrewarded by the manager.

And now, Al Hassan and Al Nassr find themselves two steps from continental glory. On Wednesday, at Alinma Stadium, they’ll take on Japanese powerhouse Kawasaki Frontale in the Champions League Elite semi-final.

Prosper, and they meet Al Ahli in an all-RSL showpiece, the teams from the Kingdom's two biggest cities contesting Asian club football’s most coveted trophy.

Al Nassr will do so on the back of a comfortable 4-1 win against fellow Japanese side Yokohama F. Marinos, in which Al Hassan again operated effectively as a foil, permitting Brozovic to put in a Player of the Match performance.

Make no mistake, the semi-final represents another test for Al Hassan and Al Nassr. Yet, both he and the club will go into the match full of confidence. Without doubt, Al Hassan’s emergence as an integral cog in Al Nassr’s twin pursuits has gone a long way to ensuring so.