En-Nesyri blames officiating as Al-Ittihad drop points against Al-Kholood

Youssef En-Nesyri has criticised the referee after Al-Ittihad were held to a 1-1 draw by Al-Kholood in their opening Roshn Saudi League match.

The Morocco striker, who scored Al-Ittihad’s only goal at Alinma Stadium in Jeddah on Saturday, said mistakes by both his team and the match officials had contributed to the result.

“Praise be to God for everything. We drew 1-1, but there were mistakes, both from our side and from the referees’ side,” En-Nesyri told Thmanyah after the match.

Al-Ittihad had to play with 10 men for the final stages after Portugal defender Danilo Pereira was sent off in the 58th minute. The referee initially allowed play to continue before consulting the video assistant referee and issuing a red card for kicking an Al-Kholood player off the ball.

En-Nesyri questioned the decision, saying: “There was no red card, there was no contact, but I am happy with the players and what they gave. I hope what comes next will be better, and we will give everything we have to win and make the fans happy.”

The draw denied Al-Ittihad a winning start to the new league campaign, although En-Nesyri’s goal maintained a notable scoring sequence for the club.

The Morocco international became the fourth foreign player in succession to score Al-Ittihad’s opening goal in the Roshn Saudi League. He was unable to add to his strike as Al-Kholood secured a point from the first-round fixture.

Despite his frustration over the dismissal and the wider officiating, En-Nesyri said the squad would quickly turn its attention to the next match.

“We will talk about the next match starting tomorrow, and we will be ready for the game. We will work to win,” he added.

The result leaves Al-Ittihad with one point from their first league match, while the club now prepares for its next fixture after failing to convert home advantage into victory.