Ollie Watkins Saudi shocker as Simone Inzaghi makes statement

Ollie Watkins was involved in a Saudi shocker as new club Al-Hilal fell to a surprise defeat to Neom.

Former Aston Villa striker Watkins played the full 90 minutes as Al-Hilal lost 2-0 in the Saudi Pro League which ended Al-Hilal’s long unbeaten run - which had stood at 47 matches - and also marked the first defeat for manager Simone Inzaghi.

"Everyone saw that in the first half we were not at the required level, we conceded two goals, and we were unlucky, and the players gave what they had during the course of the match, and such losses show us some important points that must be worked on,” said Inzaghi.

"We feel sorry for our fans, and there is a kind of frustration, and the loss is upsetting for us, especially as it is my first since coming to Saudi Arabia.

"The two goals came from a set-piece and an own goal, and we were not successful in dealing with them, and we will do a lot of work in the coming period on set-pieces and the mistakes that happened.

"We created five chances in the first half, and Mohammed Kanno's shot was close to scoring, but the goalkeeper managed to save it, and such losses push us to rearrange some important matters."

Al-Hilal are still top of the league, with Watkins previously scoring on his debut in a victory against Al-Ahli.