2008–09 Saudi Professional League
Season | 2008–09 |
---|---|
Dates | 13 September 2008 – 12 April 2009 |
Champions | Al-Ittihad (8th title) |
Relegated | Abha Al-Watani |
AFC Champions League | Al-Ittihad Al-Hilal Al-Ahli Al-Shabab |
Gulf Club Champions Cup | Al-Nassr Al-Ettifaq |
Matches played | 134 |
Goals scored | 371 (2.77 per match) |
Top goalscorer | Nasser Al-Shamrani Hicham Aboucherouane (12 goals each) |
Biggest home win | Al-Hilal 7–0 Najran (20 December 2008) |
Biggest away win | Al-Raed 0–4 Al-Shabab (30 November 2008) Al-Shabab 0–4 Al-Ittihad (28 January 2009) |
Highest scoring | Al-Ittihad 7–2 Al-Watani (15 December 2008) Al-Raed 6–3 Al-Wehda (8 April 2009) |
Longest winning run | 5 games[1] Al-Ittihad |
Longest unbeaten run | 18 games[1] Al-Hilal |
Longest winless run | 12 games[1] Abha |
Longest losing run | 5 games[1] Al-Raed |
2009–10 → |
The 2008–09 Saudi Professional League was the 33rd season of Saudi Professional League since its establishment in 1976. Al-Hilal were the defending champions, having won their 11th title in the previous season. The campaign began on 13 September 2008 and ended on 12 April 2009. A total of 12 teams contested the league, 10 of which already contested in the 2007–08 season, and two of which were promoted from the First Division.
On 12 April 2009, in the final round of the season, Al-Ittihad won the title after a 2–1 victory over Al-Hilal.[2] It was their eighth league title overall. Al-Ittihad, Al-Hilal, Al-Ahli and Al-Shabab all secured a berth for the 2010 AFC Champions League, while Al-Nassr and Al-Ettifaq qualified for the 2009–10 Gulf Club Champions Cup. Al-Watani and Abha were relegated to the First Division.[3]
Changes[]
Professional League rebrand[]
On 26 May 2008, the Saudi FF announced that league would be rebranded and would be known as the Saudi Professional League. The changes were based on the criteria introduced by AFC President Mohammed bin Hammam to improve the football standards in Asia.[4] The changes also included a website dedicated to recording statistics of the league for the first time. It was also announced that the website would be run by the Saudi Professional League rather than the Saudi FF.[5]
Qualification and Prize money[]
The League champions, runners-up and third place as well as the winner of the King Cup of Champions qualified for the 2010 AFC Champions League.
The top eight teams qualified for King Cup of Champions.
Prize money:
- First place: 2.5 million Saudi Riyals
- Second place: 1.5 million Saudi Riyals
- Third place: 1 million Saudi Riyals
Teams[]
Twelve teams competed in the league – the top ten teams from the previous season and the two teams promoted from the . The promoted teams were Al-Raed (returning to the top flight after an absence of five years) and Abha (returning to the top flight after an absence of two years). They replaced Al-Tai (after seven consecutive years in the top-flight) and Al-Qadisiyah (after six consecutive years in the top-flight).
Stadiums and locations[]
![2008–09 Saudi Professional League is located in Saudi Arabia](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/67/Saudi_Arabia_location_map.svg/440px-Saudi_Arabia_location_map.svg.png)
![Abha Abha](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Red_pog.svg/8px-Red_pog.svg.png)
![Al-Ahli Al-Ittihad Al-Ahli Al-Ittihad](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Red_pog.svg/8px-Red_pog.svg.png)
Al-Ittihad
![Al-Ettifaq Al-Ettifaq](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Red_pog.svg/8px-Red_pog.svg.png)
![Al-Hazem Al-Hazem](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Red_pog.svg/8px-Red_pog.svg.png)
![Al-Hilal Al-Nassr Al-Shabab Al-Hilal Al-Nassr Al-Shabab](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Red_pog.svg/8px-Red_pog.svg.png)
Al-Nassr
Al-Shabab
![Al-Raed Al-Raed](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Red_pog.svg/8px-Red_pog.svg.png)
![Al-Watani Al-Watani](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Red_pog.svg/8px-Red_pog.svg.png)
![Al-Wehda Al-Wehda](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Red_pog.svg/8px-Red_pog.svg.png)
![Najran Najran](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Red_pog.svg/8px-Red_pog.svg.png)
Club | Location | Stadium |
---|---|---|
Abha | Abha | Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Stadium |
Al-Ahli | Jeddah | Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium |
Al-Ettifaq | Dammam | Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium |
Al-Hazem | Ar Rass | Al-Hazem Club Stadium |
Al-Hilal | Riyadh | King Fahd Stadium |
Al-Ittihad | Jeddah | Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium |
Al-Nassr | Riyadh | King Fahd Stadium |
Al-Raed | Buraydah | King Abdullah Sport City Stadium |
Al-Shabab | Riyadh | King Fahd Stadium |
Al-Watani | Tabuk | King Khalid Sport City Stadium |
Al-Wehda | Mecca | King Abdul Aziz Stadium |
Najran | Najran | Al Akhdoud Club Stadium |
Personnel[]
Club | Coach | Nationality | City | Stadium | Capacity | 2007–08 season | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Abha | ![]() |
Abha | Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Stadium | 20,000 | First Division runners-up | ||
Al-Ahli | Stoycho Mladenov | ![]() |
Jeddah | Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium | 24,000 | 8th | Qualified to the 2008 Gulf Club Champions Cup |
Al-Ettifaq | Ioan Andone | ![]() |
Dammam | Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium | 30,000 | 4th | Qualified to the 2009 AFC Champions League |
Al-Hazem | Ammar Souayah | ![]() |
Ar Rass | Al Hazm Club Stadium | 11,000 | 7th | Qualified to the 2008–09 Arab Champions League |
Al-Hilal | Georges Leekens | ![]() |
Riyadh | King Fahd Stadium | 69,000 | 1st | Qualified to the 2009 AFC Champions League |
Al-Ittihad | Gabriel Calderón | ![]() |
Jeddah | Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium | 24,000 | 2nd | Qualified to the 2009 AFC Champions League |
Al-Nassr | Edgardo Bauza | ![]() |
Riyadh | King Fahd Stadium | 69,000 | 5th | Qualified to the 2008 Gulf Club Champions Cup |
Al-Raed | Luiz Antonio | ![]() |
Buraydah | King Abdullah Sport City Stadium | 35,000 | First Division champions | |
Al-Shabab | Enzo Trossero | ![]() |
Riyadh | King Fahd Stadium | 69,000 | 3rd | Qualified to the 2009 AFC Champions League |
Al-Watani | Hélio Vieira | ![]() |
Tabuk | King Khalid Sport City Stadium | 20,000 | 9th | |
Al-Wehda | Theo Bucker | ![]() |
Mecca | King Abdul Aziz Stadium | 28,550 | 6th | Qualified to the 2008–09 Arab Champions League |
Najran | Mokhtar Tlili | ![]() |
Najran | Al Akhdoud Club Stadium | 10,000 | 10th |
Managerial changes[]
Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Replaced by | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
Abha | ![]() |
Sacked[6] | ![]() |
October 2008 |
Al-Watani | ![]() |
Sacked[7] | ![]() |
October 2008 |
Al-Watani | ![]() |
Caretaker period ended[8] | ![]() |
November 2008 |
Abha | ![]() |
Caretaker period ended | ![]() |
November 2008 |
Al-Shabab | ![]() |
Sacked[9] | ![]() |
December 2008 |
Al-Nassr | ![]() |
Sacked[10] | ![]() |
December 2008 |
Al-Raed | ![]() |
Sacked[11] | ![]() |
December 2008 |
Al-Ettifaq | ![]() |
Sacked[12] | ![]() |
December 2008 |
Najran | ![]() |
Sacked[13] | ![]() |
January 2009 |
Al-Nassr | ![]() |
Caretaker period ended[14] | ![]() |
January 2009 |
Al-Hilal | ![]() |
Sacked[15] | ![]() |
March 2009 |
Al-Hilal | ![]() |
Caretaker period ended[16] | ![]() |
April 2009 |
Foreign players[]
The number of foreign players was limited to 3 per team, and should not be a goalkeeper. For the January transfer window, the SAFF added an additional slot for a player from one of the AFC countries.
Players name in bold indicates the player is registered during the mid-season transfer window.
Club | Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 | AFC Player | Former Players |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Abha | ![]() |
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Al-Ahli | ![]() |
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Al-Ettifaq | ![]() |
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Al-Hazem | ![]() |
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Al-Hilal | ![]() |
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Al-Ittihad | ![]() |
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Al-Nassr | ![]() |
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Al-Raed | ![]() |
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Al-Shabab | ![]() |
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Al-Watani | ![]() |
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Al-Wehda | ![]() |
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Najran | ![]() |
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League table[]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Al-Ittihad (C) | 22 | 17 | 4 | 1 | 57 | 21 | +36 | 55 | Qualification for the Champions League group stage[a] |
2 | Al-Hilal | 22 | 15 | 5 | 2 | 41 | 9 | +32 | 50 | |
3 | Al-Ahli | 22 | 11 | 7 | 4 | 33 | 20 | +13 | 40 | |
4 | Al-Shabab | 22 | 10 | 5 | 7 | 37 | 29 | +8 | 35 | |
5 | Al-Nassr | 22 | 10 | 4 | 8 | 24 | 22 | +2 | 34 | Qualification for the Gulf Club Champions Cup |
6 | Al-Ettifaq | 22 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 23 | 20 | +3 | 29 | |
7 | Al-Wehda | 22 | 7 | 5 | 10 | 33 | 39 | −6 | 26 | |
8 | Al-Hazem | 22 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 25 | 31 | −6 | 25 | |
9 | Najran | 22 | 6 | 3 | 13 | 22 | 42 | −20 | 21 | |
10 | Al-Raed (O) | 22 | 6 | 1 | 15 | 28 | 43 | −15 | 19 | Qualification to relegation play-offs |
11 | Abha (R) | 22 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 19 | 40 | −21 | 19 | |
12 | Al-Watani (R) | 22 | 2 | 6 | 14 | 22 | 48 | −26 | 12 | Relegation to the |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Play-offs (only if needed to decide champion, teams for relegation or teams for international competitions); 3) Goal difference; 4) Goals scored.
(C) Champion; (O) Play-off winner; (R) Relegated
Notes:
- ^ Al-Shabab qualified for the Champions League group stage as 2009 King Cup of Champions winners.
Fixtures and results[]
Relegation play-offs[]
Al-Raed, who finished 10th, faced Abha, who finished 11th for a two-legged play-off. The winner on aggregate score after both matches earned entry into the 2009–10 Professional League while the loser was relegated to the First Division. Al-Raed won 4–3 on aggregate and retained their place in the next edition.[17]
Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
---|---|---|---|---|
Abha | 3–4 | Al-Raed | 1–1 | 2–3 |
First leg[]
Abha | 1–1 | Al-Raed |
---|---|---|
Yaseen ![]() |
Report | ![]() |
Second leg[]
Al-Raed | 3–2 | Abha |
---|---|---|
Felipe Campos ![]() B. Al-Sherif ![]() Kabi ![]() |
Report | Al-Faraj ![]() ![]() |
Al-Raed won 4–3 on aggregate.
Season statistics[]
Scoring[]
Top scorers[]
Rank | Player | Club | Goals[18] |
---|---|---|---|
1 | ![]() |
Al-Shabab | 12 |
![]() |
Al-Ittihad | ||
3 | ![]() |
Al-Ittihad | 10 |
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Al-Hilal | ||
5 | ![]() |
Al-Wehda | 9 |
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Al-Raed | ||
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Al-Ahli | ||
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Al-Ittihad | ||
9 | ![]() |
Al-Hilal | 8 |
10 | ![]() |
Al-Ittihad | 7 |
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Al-Wehda |
Hat-tricks[]
Player | For | Against | Result | Date | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() |
Al-Shabab | Al-Wehda | 4–2 (H) | 4 October 2008 | [19] |
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Al-Shabab | Abha | 5–0 (H) | 4 December 2008 | [20] |
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Al-Ittihad | Al-Watani | 7–2 (H) | 15 December 2008 | [21] |
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Al-Hilal | Najran | 7–0 (H) | 20 December 2008 | [22] |
- Notes
4 Player scored 4 goals
(H) – Home team
(A) – Away team
Most assists[]
Rank | Player | Club | Assists[23] |
---|---|---|---|
1 | ![]() |
Al-Ittihad | 11 |
2 | ![]() |
Al-Shabab | 7 |
3 | ![]() |
Al-Hilal | 6 |
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Al-Hilal | ||
5 | ![]() |
Al-Hazem | 5 |
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Al-Ittihad | ||
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Al-Hilal | ||
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Al-Ittihad | ||
9 | ![]() |
Najran | 4 |
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Al-Ahli | ||
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Al-Wehda |
Clean sheets[]
Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets[24] |
---|---|---|---|
1 | ![]() |
Al-Hilal | 14 |
2 | ![]() |
Al-Ahli | 7 |
3 | ![]() |
Al-Ittihad | 6 |
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Al-Shabab | ||
5 | ![]() |
Abha | 5 |
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Al-Hazem | ||
7 | ![]() |
Al-Ettifaq | 3 |
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Al-Wehda | ||
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Najran |
Discipline[]
Player[]
- Most yellow cards: 6[25]
Abdullah Al-Dossari (Al-Wehda)
Ahmed Al-Fraidi (Al-Hilal)
Taisir Al-Jassim (Al-Ahli)
(Al-Watani)
Basem Al-Sherif (Al-Raed)
Harison (Al-Ahli/Al-Wehda)
Ibrahim Hazzazi (Al-Ahli)
(Al-Watani)
(Al-Hazem)
- Most red cards: 2[25]
Sultan Al-Balawi (Al-Watani)
Naif Al-Qadi (Al-Shabab)
Redha Tukar (Al-Ittihad)
Club[]
- Most yellow cards: 52[26]
- Abha
- Al-Watani
- Most red cards: 7[27]
- Al-Wehda
Awards[]
The following awards were given following the conclusion of the season. The awards were known as the and Mobily Awards for Sports Excellence and were sponsored by Saudi newspaper and Saudi telecommunication company Mobily. The awards were presented on 30 May 2009.[28]
Award | Winner | Club |
---|---|---|
Player of the Season | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Al-Shabab Al-Hilal Al-Hilal |
Young Player of the Season | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Al-Ettifaq Al-Hilal Al-Ahli |
Goldent Boot | ![]() ![]() |
Al-Shabab Al-Ittihad |
See also[]
- 2009 King Cup of Champions
- 2008–09 Saudi Crown Prince Cup
References[]
- ^ a b c d "All Statistics:Teams". Archived from the original on 2017-05-23.
- ^ "الاتحاد يتوج بلقب الدوري السعودي على حساب الهلال".
- ^ "الحزن يسيطر على لاعبي الوطني بعد الهبوط".
- ^ "دوري المحترفين في آسيا.. الحلم أصبح حقيقة!".
- ^ "ثوب الاحتراف يزين الدوري السعودي بعد ثلاثة عقود".
- ^ "هروب مدرب أبها".
- ^ "الوطني يعين الحبيب مدرباً بعد هروب صايب".
- ^ "البرازيلي فيريرا مدربا للوطني".
- ^ "الشباب يقيل بومبيدو.. والبديل مواطنه هيكتور".
- ^ "اقالة رادان و تكليف ادغر مؤقتا".
- ^ "الرائد ينهي علاقته بالدو ويبحث عن بديله في أوروبا".
- ^ "الاتفاق يقيل توني والنصر يفسد إتمام تعاقده مع اندوني".
- ^ "التليلي مدرباً لنجران".
- ^ http://www.the-afc.com/eng/articles/viewArticle.jsp_168493833.html Edgardo Bauza takes over as Al-Nasr Coach
- ^ "اتحاد الكرة يقيل الروماني كوزمين من تدريب الهلال ويمنعه من السعودية".
- ^ http://www.the-afc.com/eng/articles/viewArticle.jsp_168624529.html Leekens takes over at Al Hilal
- ^ "الرائد وأبها بين الاستمرار في الأضواء والمغادرة إلى الأولى".
- ^ "أكثر اللاعبين تسجيلاً للأهداف". slstat.com. Archived from the original on 30 June 2016.
- ^ "Al Shabab 4 – 2 Al Wehda". Archived from the original on 29 June 2016.
- ^ "Al Shabab 5 – 0 Abha". Archived from the original on 30 June 2016.
- ^ "Al Ittihad 7 – 2 Al Watani". Archived from the original on 29 June 2016.
- ^ "Al Hilal 7 – 0 Najran". Archived from the original on 29 June 2016.
- ^ "أكثر اللاعبين صناعة للأهداف". slstat.com. Archived from the original on 30 June 2016.
- ^ "أكثر الحراس محافظة على شباكه". slstat.com. Archived from the original on 30 June 2016.
- ^ a b "عدد الكروت الملونة التي أبرزت". Archived from the original on 30 June 2016.
- ^ "أكثر فريق حصل على كروت صفراء". Archived from the original on 30 June 2016.
- ^ "أكثر فريق حصل على كروت حمراء". Archived from the original on 30 June 2016.
- ^ "أحمد عطيف أفضل لاعب والحمد أفضل لاعب واعد والسبع أفضل رياضي في نتائج جوائز الموسم السعودي".
External links[]
- Saudi Professional League seasons
- 2008–09 in Saudi Arabian football
- 2008–09 in Asian association football leagues