Ali Al-Bulayhi has been a hot name in the news recently, for all sorts of weird but similar reasons. In a world that is split between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, Ali Al-Bulayhi is one who does not align with any of the factions and, in turn, takes shots at them.
Al-Bulayhi has invited a lot of heat upon himself by going against both the fanbases. The Al-Hilal defender first came into the spotlight during the World Cup for Saudi Arabia and was quick on the news for beefing with Messi. Fast forward a year, and he is now in the news for locking horns with Ronaldo.
Who is Ali Al-Bulayhi?
Ali Al-Bulayhi was born and brought up in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia, and he has been representing the national team since 2018. He plays as a defender, mostly centre back, for Al Hilal, who were linked to Messi last season. Al-Bulayhi joined Al Hilal in 2017 as a free agent, and has played for Al-Amal, Al-Nahda, and Al-Fateh, all based in Saudi Arabia, since starting his professional career in 2011.
Al-Bulayhi has played in two World Cups as of now, as he featured for Saudi Arabia during the 2018 World Cup in Russia against Uruguay. The 34-year-old defender is a four-time Saudi Pro League champion and has not won in only one season at Al Hilal. He has also been pivotal in Al Hilal’s AFC Champions League victories in 2019 and 2021 and Saudi Cup triumphs in 2020 and 2023. He also has two Saudi Super Cups in his cabinet.
He has 45 international appearances and 192 for Al Hilal, as he has cemented himself as one of the most important players for both his teams. He may have been in the news for the wrong reasons, but Ali Al-Bulayhi has been one of the best defenders in Saudi Arabia in the past couple of seasons, going toe to toe with European defenders there.
Ali Al-Bulayhi’s feud with Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi
Ali Al-Bulayhi’s feud with Ronaldo dates back to August, when the Portuguese appeared to have smeared Al-Bulayhi’s face with his sweat while being man-marked by the Saudi defender. When he faced Ronaldo in the recent game against Al Nassr, he looked to be very aggressive towards Ronaldo and even confronted him on the pitch. He ended up taunting Ronaldo when his team defeated Al Nassr, and Ronaldo failed to be in the scoresheet.
The Saudi Arabian defender was previously seen taunting Messi during the 2022 World Cup, when his team beat the eventual World Cup winners in the group stage. It seems that aggressiveness and courage are Al-Bulayhi’s personality traits, considering his clashes with Messi and Ronaldo.
What do you think of Al-Bulayhi’s behaviour towards Messi and Ronaldo? Let us know your takes.
