Saudi Pro League: How passionate are the fans?
The Saudi Pro League has become a football superpower in 2023.
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00:00 The global game has a new powerhouse. Saudi Arabia is now the home of some of the world's biggest footballers.
00:06 But whilst all the talk has been about transfers, the locals have been following their teams for longer than just one season.
00:13 So just how passionate are the fans?
00:16 Hello there and welcome to Football Now. This week we're in Jeddah to take a look at the Saudi Pro League.
00:25 Now it's a division that was founded almost 50 years ago, but this year it has taken the footballing world by storm.
00:31 A number of seismic transfers have taken place.
00:34 So let's begin this week's show by reminding ourselves about how some of the biggest names in the game have made the move to the Middle East.
00:40 Where else to start than the world's most expensive footballer Neymar, who made the move from PSG to Al-Hilal for 90 million euros in August.
00:50 Joining him in Riyadh were other household names including Ruben Neves from Wolves, Alexander Mitrovic from Fulham and Serjay Milinkovic Savic from Lazio.
00:58 Al-Hilal's city rivals Al-Nasr also had a busy summer, signing ex-Man City defender Aymeric Laporte and ex-Liverpool winger Sadio Mane.
01:06 In Jeddah, champions Al-Etihad had a busy window. Ballon d'Or holder Karim Benzema was possibly the most significant signing of the summer,
01:13 along with two of the Premier League's star midfielders over recent years, Fabinho and Mgolo Kante.
01:18 Elsewhere in the city, Al-Atli have completely overhauled their forward line, bringing in Premier League trio Roberto Firmino, Riyad Mahrez and Alassane Maksimam,
01:27 whilst goalkeeper Edouard Mendy is also a big upgrade between the sticks.
01:31 And finally to Demain, where new Al-Etifak manager Steven Gerrard pulled in some big names as he sets his sights on a top-four finish.
01:38 Ex-Liverpool duo Jordan Henderson and Gini Wijnaldum will add quality to his midfield, whilst Damari Gray and Moussa Dembele have sharpened the attack.
01:46 Noise ramping up here at the Prince Abdullah Stadium, which will play host to tonight's game, Al-Etihad vs Al-Hilal.
01:52 It's known to many here as the Saudi Classic, and believe me, the locals think that this game is bigger than Barcelona vs Real Madrid.
01:59 On one side you've got Karim Benzema of Al-Etihad, on the other, Neymar of Al-Hilal. Let's now hear from the supporters ahead of tonight's game.
02:11 It's the biggest rivalry, every match is full, everything is always done.
02:16 Al-Hilal has the biggest number of supporters, so it's like United and City, United and Liverpool.
02:24 Al-Hilal is in classical, you're talking about Real Madrid, Barcelona, Spain, you're talking about Juventus and Inter Milan,
02:39 Italy, you're talking about Arsenal and Manchester United in the UK, this is what it is.
02:44 The passion of Al-Etihad fans is not like other clubs. If you know Real Madrid, Barcelona, they have their own teams and their own passion of fans.
02:54 But like us, like Al-Etihad fans, we love our club very much because it's from our history, from the back of history.
03:04 Nowadays, players come from Europe, so it will be so passionate for fans to be lovely.
03:12 Also, Europe fans will be with us here and support us. It's a hard game, but I wish we'd win.
03:21 This is my first time in Jeddah and already, from what I've met, some of the Al-Etihad fans, they're teaching me the chants, they speak great English,
03:28 they're welcoming me into the Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium, so I'm very excited to be here and I'm sure the atmosphere is going to be top-notch too.
03:35 The team has just been in the dressing room to see the likes of Mitrovic, Benzema, Milinkovic, Savic, the fans are going to love it.
03:42 For me, it's actually wonderful because I haven't been to many in this country.
03:46 I've been one time when I watched Al-Nasr versus Paris Saint-Germain, when both, he saw Ronaldo and Messi score in one game,
03:53 which is completely incredible to see and the fans were going crazy as well.
03:58 But hopefully tonight I can show my audience as well how beautiful the game is here in Saudi Arabia and the Saudi Arabian League,
04:03 so I'm very excited to see tonight's game.
04:06 As kick-off approached, the stadium was bouncing.
04:08 The 2,000 Halal fans who had made the long journey showed no signs of fatigue,
04:12 whilst the 20,000 Etihad supporters were confident of victory.
04:16 And they had a right to be too, after Karim Benzema helped his side to a 3-1 lead at half-time.
04:21 But Halal fought back, led by Aleksandr Mitrovic, the former Fulham man,
04:25 adding to his sensational first-half strike with two more in what would eventually see Halal run out as 4-3 winners.
04:32 Well, what a game that was here at the Prince Abdullah Stadium, Al-Etihad 3, Al-Halal 4.
04:37 Forget Karim Benzema and Neymar, tonight was all about one man and one man only, Aleksandr Mitrovic.
04:43 You can probably see behind me plenty of media waiting to speak to some of the players.
04:47 We're going to go and have a chat with the goalscorer himself.
04:49 What would you say to players that are considering joining you out here?
04:53 To be honest, everybody is speaking, but this is for me, since I came here, it was an unbelievably new experience,
05:01 something different, and people here are just crazy about football.
05:06 I moved myself here from one of the best Premier Leagues.
05:09 I think this league has all the things in the future, in the next few years, to become one of the best leagues in the world.
05:17 I think they have facilities, they have fun, they have people who love football.
05:22 I think the players will more and more be open to come to this league, especially when you watch a game like this.
05:29 I think maybe this is the future of football in this country.
05:35 Well, what a night here in Jeddah. We've spoken to some passionate fans, we've seen an incredible game of football,
05:40 and we've had a chat with the hat-trick hero himself, Aleksandr Mitrovic.
05:44 It brings to an end this week's show. Do let us know your thoughts at home using the hashtag #FootballNowSaudiArabia,
05:49 and we'll see you at the same time next week from Doha. Bye for now.
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