His first Eastern Derby experience was an unforgettable one for Brendan Rodgers.
And for all the right reasons.
His Al Qadsiah side are unbeaten in 14 games in the Saudi Roshne League since he took charge, earning local bragging rights with a 4-0 win over Al Ettifaq in Dammam on Monday night.
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It was a tale of two blitzes, with the home side taking the lead twice in seven minutes at the Prince Mohammed bin Fahd Stadium before scoring twice again in stoppage time.
Nahitan Nandez continued his good form by scoring first. Ghanaian rising star Christopher Bonsu Bach finished second. Julian Quinones scored RSL’s 22nd goal of the season late in the game to equal Ivan Toney in the race for the Golden Boot.
Moments later, namesake Julian Weigel scored the goal of the night.
Derby joy was assured and Cadesia’s title was maintained. Even though Al Hilal and Al Nasr will still feature in the rescheduled Week 10 match, the east coast club remain in fourth place, three points above the top of the table.
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Rodgers has become accustomed to some of the most intense cross-city fixtures in football – the likes of Glasgow Celtic v Rangers and Liverpool v Everton – and now he has another one to his name.
And, understandably, it feels pretty good.
“I thought we played well in the game,” Rogers said. “We were playing our second game in four days but our intensity, especially the first 30 minutes, our skill level and against a very good team who scored a lot of goals can cause you problems.
“But, defensively, we applied pressure. Our aggression was very good. We only conceded two shots, one of which was near the midfield line. Then we created a lot of chances. The football was really good.
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“Of course, it’s a derby game. That always makes it special. Such a great performance, very happy with the team.”
Echoing Rodgers, this team is very good. His role since taking over from Michel in December has been to develop a more attacking style of football. It’s safe to say he has done just that.
“I always say the team I’m trying to build here is a team that starts very fast and finishes very strong,” Rogers said. “To do that you need to be physically strong. Our motto is, from the first whistle to the final whistle, we keep going.”
“We’re seeing a lot of games now where we can score early and we can score late in the game. So that’s the mentality we want to create.
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“But, of course, you need to convince the players and you see the effort they put into the game. What we are creating is a very difficult team to play against.
“I also say this to our players: Teams can analyze us, teams can watch our video, but they can’t feel the true intensity of our team until they get out there and play against us.
“That’s what we’ve seen so far – a team that’s fast, aggressive, hungry for goals and keeps clean sheets. But as always, there are areas for improvement. But overall I’m very happy with the performance.”
Rodgers must also be quite pleased with Cadesia’s position in the table. The 23rd round of the 2025-26 season has reached its third round, with three points separating top-ranked Al Ahli from fourth-placed Al Khobar Club. There is no doubt that Al Qadsiah is one of them.
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Not that Rodgers will be involved in any championship discussions.
When asked about his goals for the rest of the season, he smiled and replied: “Win the next game.” “In modern football, you can only focus on the next game.
“I’m just thinking about performing and hopefully doing well in the next game and then we move on to the next game. There’s still a lot of games to play but I can just focus on our team and continue to develop as a team.”
“Win the next game. That’s my only ambition.”