The Best Saudi Arabian Football Players In The World
People may look at Saudi Arabia and not see it as one of these historic footballing nations. And, you could say, in many respects, they’re right. However, the sport is on the rise in the country, and it’s fast becoming intensely popular. Right now, as far as nations in Asia go, Saudi Arabia is one of the most successful, and there have been some great players hailing from the country over the years.
Majed Abdullah
Majed Abdullah is undoubtedly the greatest Saudi Arabian footballer ever to live. The striker, who represented Al-Nassr for the entirety of his club career, scoring a stunning 189 goals in 194 games, also turned out for his country 117 times, weighing in with an impressive 72 goals. During his career, “The Arabian Jewel” collected many personal accolades. His farewell testimonial took place against La Liga champions Real Madrid in front of 70,000 at the King Fahd International Stadium.
Mohamed Al-Deayea
You often see strikers on lists like this, but Mohamed Al-Deayea is the greatest Saudi Arabian goalkeeper to play football. Al-Deayea went to four World Cups with his country, amassing a huge 178 caps, which remains a record today. Like Abdullah, Al-Deayea picked up multiple accolades and won the award for being the best goalkeeper of the century to hail from the Asian region. At club level, the keeper starred for Al-Ta’ee and Al-Hilal, making over 400 appearances combined. And he even scored on three occasions too, which is somewhat prolific for the man between the sticks.
Yousuf Al-Thunayan
Everybody loves a playmaker, right? Well, Saudi Arabia’s very own is Yousuf Al-Thunayan, otherwise known as “The Philosopher.” In terms of the attributes you need to be able to create chances for others, Al-Thunayan had it all – ball control, vision and technique. Like many Saudi Arabian players of that era, Al-Thunayan chose to stay with Al-Hilal for the entirety of his playing days, scoring 183 goals in 350 games at club level, and collecting 81 caps for Saudi Arabia, scoring twenty goals.
Mohammad Al-Shalhoub
You will struggle to find many players on the planet that have a bigger haul of trophies than Mohammad Al-Shalhoub, with the left winger amassing a stunning thirty-three championships with Al-Hilal, the club he played for all his career. At 5’4, Al-Shalhoub had the guile to get past players, and this made him crucial to the success of his team, who he racked up 329 games for, scoring 64 goals. Saudi Arabia caps were always inevitable, with Al-Shalhoub another to break the century mark, registering 118 appearances for his country.Players like those mentioned above have gone a long way in developing football and its popularity in Saudi Arabia. It has always been the case that football has a huge global audience, and this has been underlined by the volume of online football betting conducted via reputable operators worldwide in the region of late, and sometimes by those living elsewhere too, which shows just how far Saudi Arabian and Asian-based football has become.
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