Benzema v Ronaldo, Kante v Neves: Top 10 early 2023/24 Saudi Pro League fixtures to watch

The Saudi Pro League confirmed at the weekend the fixture list for the 2023/24 season, as the top tier of football in the kingdom ushers in a new era with a collection of the game’s star names.

Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, N'Golo Kante, Roberto Firmino and Steven Gerrard are already there, with many more expected before the action kicks off next month.

Here are some of the standout clashes to come in the first half of the campaign, which is sure to kick off amid unprecedented attention when it begins on August 11.

The league gets under way with the returning Al Ahli as hosts, back in the top-flight after experiencing the first relegation in their history two seasons ago. The Jeddah side, who have recently signed former Liverpool forward Firmino and goalkeeper Edouard Mendy, from Chelsea, open against familiar foes: they pipped Al Hazem to the second-tier title last season. Ahli might well even by then have Manchester City winger Riyad Mahrez, ramping up the interest.

The champions, fresh from a first top-flight crown in nine years, kick off their defence at Al Raed, where Benzema, Kante, Portuguese winger Jota and probably another high-profile recruit or two – Ittihad are expected to sign Brazil midfielder Fabinho from Liverpool – will be introduced amid much fanfare to the Pro League. Boasting the current Ballon d’Or holder and a 2018 World Cup winner, Ittihad will be eager to start off with a bang. Al Raed, 10th last season, are their opening opponents.

It feels a real new era at Al Hilal in particular, after a campaign in which they narrowly missed out on major silverware. The record 18-time Saudi champions, third in the league and runners-up in both the Fifa Club World Cup and the Asian Champions League, have