According to “Varzesh3,” the first half of the crucial match between Al-Fateh and Al-Ittihad in the 28th round of the Saudi Professional League ended with Laurent Blanc’s team trailing 1-0. They now have only one half to prevent this loss and maintain their point difference with Al-Hilal at the top of the table.

Although only one goal was scored in the first half, several controversial incidents occurred, including missed penalties by players from both teams. The disallowed penalty for the home team was similar to Julian Alvarez’s penalty in the match between Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League.

Al-Fateh’s relentless pressure continued after scoring the first goal, and in the 34th minute, a foul by Al-Ittihad defenders on Murat Batna gave the home team a golden opportunity to double their lead.

Batna, who had also assisted the first goal for Al-Fateh in the 10th minute, stepped up to take the penalty. However, just seconds before striking the ball, he slipped and fell. Despite this, his left-footed shot found the net, away from the Al-Ittihad goalkeeper’s reach.

As Al-Fateh players were preparing to celebrate, the referee suddenly ordered a VAR review and subsequently disallowed the penalty, similar to Julian Alvarez’s penalty in the Champions League round of 16, due to a double touch by the Al-Fateh striker. This was a huge stroke of luck for Laurent Blanc’s team, who remained 1-0 behind. Fabinho also missed a penalty for Al-Ittihad in the final minute of the first half, leaving the score at 1-0 for Al-Fateh at halftime.