Marcos Leonardo's first-half penalty was enough to book Al-Hilal a spot in the King's Cup round of 16 with a 1-0 win over Al-Bukayriyah.

The defending champions dominated from the start, with Abdullah Al Hamddan and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic both seeing early efforts saved by Dziugas Bartkus.

Al Hamddan then won the game-winning spot-kick in the 40th minute, being brought down in the box by Ibrahim Al Sunaytan, and Leonardo made no mistake from 12 yards.

Al-Hilal kept pushing for another goal, with substitutes Renan Lodi and Aleksandar Mitrovic both testing Bartkus in the second half, but they could not add to the scoreline.

Neymar, who is gearing up for his return to action after a year on the sidelines, was not involved for Al-Hilal, who lead the way in the Saudi Pro League.

Data Debrief: Leonardo proves the difference

Al-Hilal were dominant in the first half, completely overwhelming their opponents as they had 12 of their 17 shots before the break, getting five of those on target.

But across the 90 minutes, it was Leonardo who was the standout, having the second-most shots (three) and accumulating 0.82 expected goals (xG).

His only shot on target may have been the winning penalty, but he proved a handful as he also had the most touches in the opposition box (10).

Marcos Leonardo's first-half penalty was enough to book Al-Hilal a spot in the King Cup round of 16 with a 1-0 win over Al-Bukayriyah.

The defending champions dominated from the start, with Abdullah Al Hamddan and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic both seeing early efforts saved by Dziugas Bartkus.

Al Hamddan then won the game-winning spot-kick in the 40th minute, being brought down in the box by Ibrahim Al Sunaytan, and Leonardo made no mistake from 12 yards.

Al-Hilal kept pushing for another goal, with substitutes Renan Lodi and Aleksandar Mitrovic both testing Bartkus in the second half, but they could not add to the scoreline.

Neymar, who is gearing up for his return to action after a year on the sidelines, was not involved for Al-Hilal, who lead the way in the Saudi Pro League.

Data Debrief: Leonardo proves the difference

Al-Hilal were dominant in the first half, completely overwhelming their opponents as they had 12 of their 17 shots before the break, getting five of those on target.

But across the 90 minutes, it was Leonardo who was the standout, having the second-most shots (three) and accumulating 0.82 expected goals (xG).

His only shot on target may have been the winning penalty, but he proved a handful as he also had the most touches in the opposition box (10).

Stefano Pioli avoided an embarrassing first defeat as Al-Nassr head coach as Nawaf Bu Washl's 92nd minute winner saw the visitors beat second tier Al-Hazem in the King's Cup on Monday. 

Pioli, taking charge of his second game for the Saudi Pro League club, saw his side go close to opening the scoring early on when Talisca's effort struck the woodwork. 

But Al-Nassr's dominance was rewarded in the sixth minute of first-half injury time when Sadio Mane headed beyond Ibrahim Zaid after Sultan Al Ghannam's cross. 

However, the hosts stunned Pioli's side just after the hour-mark as Basil Al Sayyali turned home his second goal of the season with an emphatic finish off the crossbar.

Al-Nassr's frustrations continued heading into the closing stages as Mane, Mohammed Marran and Wesley saw efforts repelled by their plucky opponents. 

But with the game poised for extra-time, a defensive mix-up between Saud Al Rashed and Zaid allowed Bu Washl to steal in, finishing into an empty net to put the visitors into the hat for the next round. 

Data Debrief: Pioli feels Ronaldo absence

Without Cristiano Ronaldo in their ranks, Al-Nassr lacked a clinical finisher at the top end of the pitch, failing to capitalise on the opportunities they created. 

The visitors ended the contest with an expected goals (xG) total of 3.16, but only eight of their 21 shots were on target, whilst they also missed five big chances. 

Mane was the notable standout for Pioli's side, registering more touches in the opposition box (eight) and total shots (five) than anyone for Al-Nassr. 

Stefano Pioli avoided an embarrassing first defeat as Al-Nassr head coach as Nawaf Bu Washl's 91st minute winner saw the visitors beat second tier Al-Hazem in the King's Cup on Monday. 

Pioli, taking charge of his second game of the Saudi Pro League club, saw his side go close to opening the scoring early on when Talisca's effort struck the woodwork. 

But Al-Nassr's dominance was rewarded in the sixth minute of first-half injury time when Sadio Mane headed beyond Ibrahim Zaid after Sultan Al Ghannam's cross. 

However, the hosts stunned Pioli's side just after the hour-mark as Basil Al Sayyali turned home his second goal of the season with an emphatic finish off the crossbar.

Al-Nassr's frustrations continued heading into the closing stages as Mane, Mohammed Marran and Wesley saw their efforts repelled by their plucky opponents. 

But with the game poised for extra-time, a defensive mix-up between Saud Al Rashed and Zaid allowed Bu Washl to steal in, finishing into an empty net to send the visitors into the hat for the next round. 

Data Debrief: Pioli feels Ronaldo absence

Without Cristiano Ronaldo within their ranks, Al-Nassr lacked a clinical finisher at the top end of the pitch, failing to capitalise on the opportunities they created. 

The visitors ended the contest with an expected goals (xG) total of 3.16, but only eight of their 21 shots were on target, whilst they also missed five big chances. 

Mane was the notable standout for Pioli's side, registering more touches in the opposition box (eight) and total shots (five) than anyone for Al-Nassr. 

Al-Nassr lost a dramatic Kings' Cup final featuring three red cards against Al-Hilal on Friday, with the Saudi Pro League champions claiming the treble with a 5-4 penalty shoot-out win.

Former Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic peeled away to the back post to head home the opener after just seven minutes, before Cristiano Ronaldo was denied by Yassine Bounou.

Al-Nassr looked to be imploding when David Ospina was sent off for a wild lunge on Malcom outside his penalty area shortly after half-time, but it was 10 versus 10 when Ali Al Bulayhi received his second yellow card late on.

Aiman Yahya took advantage to equalise in stoppage time, before Al-Hilal lost a second centre-back to a red card, Kalidou Koulibaly receiving his marching orders when he clattered into substitute goalkeeper Waleed Abdullah.

Neither team could find an extra-time winner, though, and it was Bounou who came up with the goods in the shoot-out. 

He pushed Meshari Al Nemer's tame kick onto the post after Ali Al Hassan and Saud Abdulhamid had traded misses, claiming the trophy for Al-Hilal.

Data Debrief: Domestic sweep for Al-Hilal

Having also won the Saudi Super Cup and the Saudi Pro League, going unbeaten throughout their league campaign, Al-Hilal capped a perfect domestic season with their 11th King's Cup. Only Al-Ahli (13) have won the competition more often. 

Al-Nassr, meanwhile, have now gone four seasons without a domestic trophy, with August's Arab Club Champions Cup all they have to show for their efforts in 2023-24.