N'Golo Kante emphatically opened his Al-Ittihad goalscoring account after scoring a long-range screamer in their 2-1 league win on Thursday night. <br /><br />The French midfielder, who secured a free move to the Saudi side in June, was the all-important winner for his side against Al Fateh FC. <br /><br />Kante, 32, collected the ball on the edge of the area, just before half-time, before unleashing an effort at goal which cannoned off the crossbar and flew into the net. <br /><br />The World Cup winner's strike, which sent them top of the table, came after Marwane Saadane opened the scoring for the visitors and Romarinho's leveler. <br /><br />Ex-Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema will be grateful that his former national team-mate managed to get the job done in his absence, with the striker currently ill.<br /><br />Elsewhere in the league's action, Neymar and Al-Hilal were held to a 1-1 draw with Damac FC. <br /><br />The former Barcelona and PSG star was unable to make the difference for his side following goals from Nicolae Stanciu and Malcom. <br /><br />Despite being held to the draw, Neymar's side still sits second in the Saudi Pro League table with 17 points thus far. <br /><br />In perhaps the most thrilling match of the night, former Liverpool midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum scored a brace during Al-Ettifaq's 4-3 victory over Al Taee. <br /><br />Former Fulham and Celtic striker Moussa Dembele also bagged a brace for Steven Gerrard's side to help secure the win, following a hat-trick from the visitors' Bernard Mensah. <br /><br />That result takes Gerrard's side to fourth in the table and just two points behind league leaders Al-Ittihad. <br /><br />In one of the other games, Yannick Carrasco and Ever Banega were on hand to help Al Shabbab earn a 4-1 victory over Al Hazem. <br /><br />Former Sevilla midfielder Banega scored a brace on the night to ensure the hosts walked away will all three points. <br /><br />And in the final game of the evening, Al-Taawoun beat Al-Raed thanks to goals from Joao Pedro and Waleed Al-Ahmad.
