Saudi Pro League leaders Al-Hilal have defeated Inter Miami 4-3 in the opening game of the 2024 Riyadh Season Cup on Monday.
Just days before meeting Al-Nassr and former rival Cristiano Ronaldo, Inter Miami started their pre-season tour in Saudi Arabia with a disappointing defeat.
Having the home advantage, Al-Hilal needed only ten minutes to open the scoring with ex-Fulham talisman Aleksandar Mitrovic firing his side into the lead.
The Riyadh giants doubled their advantage four minutes later through an improvised finish from Abdullah Al-Hamdan beyond Miami’s Drake Callender.
Despite their flying start, Al-Hilal’s defensive error allowed Luis Suarez to halve the deficit after 34 minutes to give Miami a lifeline heading into the break.
However, they conceded just before half-time with Brazil’s Michael Delgado taking advantage of a huge blunder by Callender to restore Al-Hilal’s two-goal cushion.
Lionel Messi finally got on the scoresheet converting a thumping penalty before David Ruiz struck in quick succession to bring back the score on level terms in the 55th minute.
With less than two minutes remaining to full-time, former Barcelona winger Malcom won the game for Al-Hilal as his header was too hot to handle for Miami’s Callender.
The defeat meant that Miami have now failed to win their third consecutive pre-season friendly after suffering a goalless draw with El Salvador and a 1-0 defeat against FC Dallas.
Inter Miami will look to bounce back as they face Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr next in the Riyadh Season Cup on Thursday, February 1st.