Foreigners dominate the opening of the Roshan League

Foreign players dominated the scoring scene in the opening round of the 2026-2027 Saudi Professional League, netting 22 of the 28 goals scored, compared to just 6 by Saudi players. The first round saw a slight decrease in the scoring rate compared to the start of last season, with 28 goals compared to 32 in the opening round of the previous season – a difference of four goals. Foreign players were clearly dominant in six matches, while Saudi players only managed to score in two, with the Al-Taawoun vs. Al-Khaleej match ending in a goalless draw. The results of the first round were as follows: Al-Hazm defeated Abha 2-1, Al-Qadisiyah beat Al-Shabab 3-1, Al-Ahli edged Al-Diriyah 1-0, Neom defeated Al-Fayha 2-1, Al-Ettifaq triumphed over Al-Riyadh 4-2, Al-Hilal defeated Al-Faisaly 4-2, and Al-Nassr beat Al-Fateh 3-0. Meanwhile, Al-Ittihad drew with Al-Kholoud 1-1, and Al-Taawon and Al-Khaleej played to a goalless draw. The Abha-Al-Hazm match was the only exception, where all goals were scored by Saudi players. Mohammed Al-Dossari scored Abha's goal, while Abdulaziz Al-Duwaihi, who scored the first goal of the season, and Ahmed Al-Shamrani scored both goals for Al-Hazm. In the Al-Shabab-Al-Qadisiyah match, Saudi players continued their strong performance, scoring three of the four goals. Hammam Al-Hamami scored for Al-Shabab, while Mohammed Abu Al-Shamat and Turki Al-Ammar scored for Al-Qadisiyah, with a foreign player scoring the lone goal. It's noteworthy that all six Saudi goals in the first round came on the opening day, before local players disappeared from the scoresheet in the remaining matches, with foreign professionals clearly dominating the scoring charts. As for the top scorer, Frenchman Moussa Dembélé, Al-Ettifaq's striker, stole the show after netting a hat-trick against Al-Riyadh, quickly taking the lead, while Portuguese player Rúben Neves of Al-Hilal sits in second place with two goals.