Months After Sucking Lionel Messi Dry, Saudi Defender Sets Massive Record With $12,500,000 Transfer

There are not a lot of players who can say they got the better of Lionel Messi on the World stage. Argentina was up against Saudi Arabia in their opening clash and faced a surprising challenge. One player stepped up to the occasion to make things harder for Messi. Flash forward to now, while Lionel Messi has moved to the United States, the Saudi side Al Hilal has spent a massive $12.5 million to sign the defender who sucked the life out of Lionel Messi.

With the transfer fee involved, Al Hilal has also broken the transfer record for a Saudi Arabian player in SPL history. With the twenty-four-year-old defender in their ranks, it will be interesting to see if he can do the same with Cristiano Ronaldo.

Al Hilal makes history with $12.5 million signing

Saudi Pro League teams have made some major impact in the ongoing transfer window this season. After Lionel Messi declined to join the side for an alleged billion-dollar contract. The team has been gathering some top names across Europe. However, all clubs are mandated to have 3 or more national players in their playing 11.

According to Marca, Al Hilal, following Messi’s snub, has invested carefully in signing the likes of Milenkovic Savic, Neymar Jr., and Ruben Neves. However, despite the big signings, one man who could be the biggest asset for the side this season is Saudi Arabian defender Hassan Tambakti. Al Hilal shelled out a massive $12.5 million for the player setting the domestic record for the highest transfer.

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Tambakti rose to fame following his performance against Argentina in the World Cup. Despite his young age and admiration for Lionel Messi, the youngster gave Messi the roughest time, which is a statement.

Massive Expectations from Hasan Tambakti after shutting down Lionel Messi

With Saudi Arabia drawn against Argentina in their first fixture of the World Cup, the side was up for a tough challenge. However, while Lionel Messi gave Argentina the lead with a goal from the spot, Tambakti shut down the Argentine in the second half. The young defender was on point with his tackles while making sure that Messi did not get enough room to carry the game.

There are a lot of expectations for the young Saudi Arabian defender after being signed for a record fee. However, while the club wants the player to relax, settle in, and feel at home. Al Hilal will be expecting the former Al Shadab star to repeat his heroics from the World Cup during the current season. It will be interesting to see how the side performs with the addition of the new defender.

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