Jouy Elite League: Five young players to watch in the fourth round

The Jouy Elite League (Saudi Under-21 League) returns on Sunday, 13 September, with seven matches before the fourth round concludes with five more fixtures on Monday.

The meeting between Al Hazem and Al Fateh is likely to attract particular attention, as it repeats last season’s final and brings together two of the competition’s most notable attacking talents.

Hassan Idris was not among the players expected to dominate the final nearly four months ago, but he became its decisive figure. The Al Hazem forward scored twice in about five minutes to help his side beat Al Fateh 3-1 and win the inaugural edition of the Jouy Elite League.

He made his first appearance of the current campaign in the previous round, scoring Al Hazem’s third goal in a 3-1 victory over Al Fayha. Supporters will now hope he can produce another influential display when the finalists meet again on Monday, with Al Hazem seeking a second successive win.

Al Fateh’s Jefferson Ramos will have his own reason to target the fixture. The Cape Verde-born striker scored six times in last season’s knockout stages, including three goals against Al Wehda in the quarter-final play-off, two against Al Nassr in the quarter-final and one against Al Qadsiah in the semi-final.

Al Hazem were the only side to stop Ramos from scoring during that run. He failed to find the net in the final, which Al Fateh lost 3-1, and was denied the chance to help his team claim the first title in the competition.

Ramos is also looking to respond after drawing a blank in the previous round. Al Fateh beat Al Nassr 2-1, with Abdulaziz Al Fawaz scoring both goals, while Ramos made little impact and was booked.

He has scored four goals after three rounds, placing him joint second in the goalscoring standings alongside Al Ahli winger Ziyad Aba. Both are two goals behind Al Ettifaq forward Mohammed Al-Eissa.

Al-Eissa has the opportunity to score in a fourth consecutive match when Al Ettifaq face Al Wehda. He has six goals in three games, averaging two per match, while Al Wehda conceded four goals in a 4-1 defeat by Al Ittihad last time out and have allowed five in their past two fixtures.

Another player to watch is Adnan Al-Bishri, who scored Al Ittihad’s third goal against Al Wehda. His finish displayed close control, dribbling ability and powerful, accurate shooting. With Al Ittihad’s defenders expected to focus on leading scorer Ammar Al Ghamdi against Al Qadsiah, Al-Bishri may find more space. He joined Al Ittihad on a free transfer in summer 2025 after emerging at city rivals Al Ahli.

Finally, Al Nassr teenager Salman Sagheer scored his side’s only goal in a 2-1 defeat by Al Fateh, with a stoppage-time solo effort after beating several defenders. He could be the latest in a line of promising Al Nassr players to emerge in the competition, following Abdulmalik Al Jaber, Abdulrahman Sufyani, Saad Haqawi, Haider Abdulkarim and Asim Mohammed.