Six-time African Player of the Year Asisat Oshoala produced a ruthless display on Saturday, scoring a hat-trick to power Al Hilal into the semifinals of the Saudi Women’s Premier Challenge Cup following a commanding 5–0 victory over Eastern Flames.
The Nigerian forward, who went into the contest with six league goals in seven appearances, set the tone early at the Al Taraji Club Stadium. Oshoala opened the scoring in the first half, capping a dominant Al Hilal performance as her side took a deserved lead into the break.
She picked up where she left off after halftime, calmly slotting home her second goal to double Al Hilal’s advantage as Eastern Flames struggled to cope with sustained attacking pressure.
Oshoala completed her hat-trick in emphatic fashion later in the match, scoring Al Hilal’s fourth goal to register her first treble of the season and further underline her growing influence in Saudi women’s football.
The emphatic win saw Al Hilal finish second in Group A, behind Al Nassr, who topped the group with a perfect record. Al Qadisiyah ended third, level on points with Al Hilal but trailing on goal difference.
With momentum firmly on their side, Al Hilal now turn attention to the Challenge Cup semifinals, inspired by Oshoala’s clinical brilliance as they chase a place in the final and their first trophy since lifting the Kingdom Women’s Community Football League title in 2020.
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. On the back of domestic engagement since 2008, he began his international career journey at Goal.com in February 2014, where he served as an African women's football correspondent for nearly eight years. During his tenure at Goal.com, Samuel covered major events such as three Women's Africa Cup of Nations (2016, 2018, 2022) and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada plus 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. His work at Goal.com earned him widespread acclaim, particularly for his in-depth profiles of African football stars, notably Asisat Oshoala, whose rise he documented from her early years to her breakthrough at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2014. Prior to his role at Goal.com, Samuel freelanced for various print and broadcast media outlets in Nigeria, including Graphics Newspaper, Radio Nigeria, Grace FM, and Savid Newspaper. His extensive experience and expertise led to his appointment to the Nigeria Football Federation's Standing Committee on Women's Football Development from 2016 to 2018. Since February 2018, Samuel has been the Social Media Manager for Nigeria's women's national teams.In 2019, Samuel joined the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a women's football content contributor and was promoted to Women's Football Editor in 2021. His contributions to women's football continued as he worked as a Media Consultant for Content Creation and Editorials at the 2022 CAF Women's Champions League. Currently, Samuel also serves as the spokesman for the Nigeria Women Football League, further solidifying his influence and dedication to the growth of women's football in Africa.
