Al Ahli Jeddah suffered a stunning defeat at the hands of second-division side Al Jandal, crashing out of the Saudi King’s Cup in a major upset.
Al Jandal took the lead in the 24th minute through Abdallah Matuq, with Yassine Amri doubling their advantage just six minutes later.
Despite Ahli Jeddah’s efforts to mount a comeback, their only response came in the 82nd minute when Ivan Toney found the net, but it wasn’t enough to turn the tide.
The game ended with a 2-1 in favor of Al Jandal, resulting in Al Ahli getting knocked out of the Saudi Cup after a disappointing display on the pitch.
After the match, Al Ahli Jeddah coach Matthias Jaissle expressed his disappointment, admitting “There are no excuses for how we performed.” He added that “two naive mistakes” put his team in a difficult position early on, from which they couldn’t recover.
Addressing rumors of his potential sacking, the German coach stated that he wasn’t worried about his job, but understood the fans’ frustrations and boos, acknowledging that the team fell well short of expectations.
This defeat marks the first major upset in the Saudi Cup this season, with Al Jandal advancing at the expense of one of the league’s top sides.