Fashion Sakala Jr. was on cloud nine following his man of the match performance for Al Fayha on Saturday, taking a dig at rivals Al Faisaly after beating them 4-1 in the Sudair Derby. He scored a goal and provided two assists.
Al Fayha and Al Faisaly, both stationed in the Sudair region of Saudi Arabia, battled it out in a league match for the first time since 2022 following the latter’s recent promotion to the Saudi Pro League. During their last campaign in the topflight, Al Faisaly beat Al Fayha 2-1 at home before securing a goalless draw on the road.
The bragging rights were on the line as the two sides locked horns at the Al Majma’ah Sport City on Saturday evening.
The visitors stunned Al Fayha at the half-hour mark when Abdulrahman Al-Safri’s header was adjourned to have crossed the goal-line. The Leopards responded just before the break through Sakala, who thumped the ball into the roof of the net with his left foot at 43 minutes.
Ziyad Al Sahafi towered over the defense to nod Al Fayha in front following a brilliant delivery by Jason in the 57th minute. Nine minutes later, Sakala, while on the left wing, played a quick throughball to Jason, who made it 3-1.
Sakala was at it again in the 91st minute, leaving a defender for dead with his trademark stepovers before calmly laying off the ball to eventual scorer Hugo Moura.
A huge three points for Al Fayha, who leapfrogged Al Faisaly in the league standings, sitting on eleven points, one above the day’s opponents. They also remain five points clear of the relegation zone after 12 matches.
“I am happy” – Sakala.
Sakala has now amassed 60 direct goal involvements in the Saudi Pro League, scoring 43 times and assisting on 17 occasions.
Following the win, Sakala was not one to shy away from addressing the pre-match taunts against his club, confidently declaring, “I think we played very well. The team did so much. We deserved to win this game. I am very proud for the three points.”
“You know this was the topic the whole week. I am very happy that we’ve smashed them [Al Faisaly]. You know, they talked a lot of bad things about Al Fayha. But I am very happy that we’ve killed them. Today, I am sure they are very disappointed,” added Sakala.
Al Fayha will now turn their attention to a tough visit at Al Qadsiah, who are currently second in the Saudi Pro League, after posting nine wins in their first 12 matches. Prince Saud bin Jalawi Stadium will host the clash set for November 5.
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