Ali Al-Bulayhi has managed to stop CR7 in the Saudi Arabian league and Messi during the group stage of the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are two of the best footballers in history. Messi and Ronaldo boast successful careers at club level and with the Argentine and Portuguese national teams, respectively, however, they both have a nightmare in common: Ali Al-Bulayhi.
The 34-year-old Arab footballer is not considered one of the best defenders in the world. In fact, Al-Bulayhi has never played in the Old Continent and his entire career has been spent in Saudi Arabian football. However, the center-back has stood out as one of the few defenders in the last 20 years who has managed to “stop” Cristiano and Messi.
In the semi-final of the Saudi Super Cup, Al Hilal and Al Nassr starred in a very exciting duel that ended in a 2-1 victory for Al Hilal, and one of the most important moments of the match occurred in the last moments of the match with Ali Al-Bulayhi causing the expulsion of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Ali Al-Bulayhi, the nightmare of Messi and CR7. Yasser Bakhsh/Getty Images
The top star of the Portugal National Team received a direct red card four minutes from time for elbowing a Al-Bulayhi when his team was down 2-0 before scoring a goal. After receiving the red card from him, Ronaldo appeared on video raising his fist in a punching gesture as the referee walked away from the 39-year-old.
After the commitment, Jorge Jesús, technical director of Al Hilal, said: “Ronaldo is one of the most important players in the world and an example for many. But he is not used to losing in his career, so it is natural that he gets out of control when loses, just as it is natural to lose emotional and mental focus in defeats.
“It’s not easy to play against [Kalidou] Koulibaly and Al-Bulayhi are the best central defenders in Saudi football. “I’m not going to take credit away from Ronaldo, he is still very strong, he always has been and will continue to be the most important player in the world, he is an example and a model,” he indicated.
For his part, Al Nassr coach Luis Castro pointed out that the VAR should have intervened as Ronaldo did not deserve to be sent off.
“It is difficult to talk about the incident in which Ronaldo received the red card. We have seen several videos throughout this season where Ronaldo was provoked and, after seeing some images, Ronaldo did nothing that justified being sent off. The opposing player [Al-Bulayhi] pretended [haber sido golpeado]. There was little contact between Cristiano and the rival defender. “He made a scandal and the VAR should have called the referee to review the expulsion episode,” he said.
On social media, Al Nassr expressed his disappointment with Monday’s officiating, suggesting that the outcome of the game was predetermined. “You can’t change what was already decided before! Thanks to our fans,” the club wrote.
In the 2022 Qatar World Cup, Ali Albulayhi and the Saudi Arabia National Team starred in one of the surprises of the tournament by beating the Argentina National Team in the group stage, which would manage to recover from the hard blow and be crowned champion of the competition by winning in a spectacular finale to Kylian Mbappé’s France.
One of the protagonists of Arabia’s historic victory over the Albiceleste was Ali Albulayhi, who was in charge of covering Messi throughout the match, but mainly of facing the Argentine star.
At minute 53 of the match, Salem Al-Dawsari scored 1-2 against Argentina and at that moment, Ali Albulayhi approached Lionel Messi, hit him a couple of times on the back and for a few seconds, near his face, hit him. He repeated an enigmatic message several times.
After the match, Albulayhi himself, in a mixed zone, revealed what he said to the Argentine star, who first reacted to his words with a gesture of disbelief and then with a smile: “I told him he wouldn’t win.”
In an interview with an Arab media, Ali Albulayhi revealed that when he faced Messi and when he plays against Cristiano in the local championship, the defender “annoys” them by comparing them.
“When I play against Cristiano Ronaldo, I tell him that Messi is better; but when I play against Messi, I tell him that Cristiano is better. “That’s how I drove them both crazy,” he noted.
In this way, Ali Al-Bulayhi’s “tactics” could be imitated by the defenders who will face Messi and Cristiano in the Copa América and Euro Cup this summer.
2024-04-09 19:20:16
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