Al-Ittihad suffered a surprise 2-0 defeat to Al Fateh to allow Al-Hilal to cut their lead at the top of the Saudi Pro League to four points, potentially reigniting the title race. (Match Highlights | More Football News)
Laurent Blanc's leaders entered Thursday's games seven points clear at the summit as they chase a 10th league title.
But goals from Amine Sbai and Matias Vargas handed Jose Gomes' Al Fateh a deserved home victory as they pulled four points clear of the relegation zone.
Former Liverpool midfielder Fabinho had a penalty saved by Nawaf Al Aqidi at 1-0, with the Al Fateh goalkeeper also providing the assist for Vargas' clinching goal.
Al-Ittihad's defeat came after last season's champions Al-Hilal won 3-0 at home to Al-Khaleej, with Salem Al Dawsari scoring twice before Aleksandar Mitrovic added a late third off a Ruben Neves assist.
Al-Hilal are now just four points behind Al-Ittihad with six games remaining and boast a far superior goal difference.
Elsewhere, Al-Ettifaq climbed into seventh with a 1-0 win over Al-Riyadh, courtesy of Vitinho's goal, and Al-Shabab played out a goalless draw with relegation-threatened Al-Okhdood.
Data debrief: Al Aqidi's day to remember
Al Aqidi had a game to remember for Al Fateh, becoming just the second goalkeeper to save a penalty and assist a goal in the same Saudi Pro League game on record.
Paulo Vitor previously achieved the feat last April, playing for Al-Okhdood against Abha.
Al-Ittihad are now wobbling, having only won two of their last seven Saudi Pro League matches (four draws, one defeat) since a 4-1 win over Al-Hilal in February.
Al-Hilal's victory on Thursday was just their fourth in their last 10 games (three draws, three losses), though, so they need to find greater consistency if they are to take advantage.
