Saudi Arabian Championship

Arabian clubs are constantly strengthening their rosters with star performers. The Ballon d'Or winner Karim Benzema, Roberto Firmino, N'Golo Kante, Edouard Mendy, and Ruben Neves have already moved to the Middle East. And the trend started by Cristiano Ronaldo seems to be unstoppable. Did many football stars play in the Saudi Professional League before the Portuguese star moved there?

Before Cristiano Ronaldo arrived, the Saudi Pro-League already had world-class players. It is just that the league wasn't heard to talk about them. It was at Al-Nasr that the famous Cameroonian Vincent Aboubakar who vacated Cristiano's place. He is a footballer who played in Europe, namely for Lorient, Porto and Besiktas. His performances in the Portuguese and Turkish championships were particularly successful, where he became a champion twice in each country. Aboubakar is also one of the best scorers in the history of the Cameroon national team, second only to the legendary Samuel Eto'o. And it was thanks to Vincent's goal that the Cameroonians won the gold medal at the 2017 African Cup of Nations.

Angelos Charisteas, the 2004 European Champion in the Greek national team, played less successfully for Al-Nasr. This forward made a name for himself by scoring the only and winning goal in the Euro final match against star-studded Portugal. Angelos also made successful appearances for Werder in Germany, Ajax and Feyenoord in the Netherlands. In July 2012, he became a free agent and six months later signed a contract with the Saudi Arabian team Al-Nasr. In six months, he played only seven matches, scoring one goal, and then ended his career.

French striker Bafetimbi Gomis deserves a special mention. He shined at Olympique de Lyon from 2009 to 2014. Gomis is one of the six leading scorers in French club history. Bafetimbi also played for Saint-Etienne, Swansea, Marseille, and Galatasaray. in 2018, he moved to Saudi Arabia, where he had a great season with Al-Hilal. in 2019, Al-Hilal won the Asian champions league and in 2020, the Saudi Arabian Championship. Interestingly, Gomis returned to Europe again last year. He currently plays for Galatasaray in Turkey.

Long before Ronaldo arrived, Brazilian Romarinho was conquering the Middle East. This forward made a name for himself not in Europe, but in South America. In 2012, he won the Libertadores Cup and the Club World Cup. In 2014, instead of moving to Europe, he immediately decided to conquer the Middle East, starting to play for Qatar's Al-Jaysh. There he became the winner of the Cup of the Crown Prince of Qatar. Later, he signed a contract with Al Jazeera from Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates. Moreover, in 2018, Romarinho moved to Arabian Al-Ittihad. Here, the Brazilian added not only to his individual achievements, but also to the team's: he became the team's top scorer, won the Saudi Arabian Championship and Super Cup.

Al-Ittihadi, the team where Karim Benzema and N'Golo Kante will play from now on, also featured the 2009/2010 Champions League winner Salli Muntari. The Ghanaian midfielder was a prominent figure in the Italian championship. Initially, he was a key player of Udinese, and then he played for the titled Inter and Milan. It was with Internationale that Muntari won the Champions League. In Saudi Arabia, Sally defended the colors of Al-Ittihad in the 2015/2016 season. He played 18 matches and scored twice.

Sebastian Giovinco is also worth mentioning among the notable characters. The Italian striker has played for several clubs in Series A: Parma, Empoli, and Juventus. From 2015 to 2018, he played effectively overseas, defending the colors of the Canadian club Toronto. In 114 matches, Giovinco scored 68 goals, earning him a number of individual awards. In particular, he won the title of MLS top scorer in 2015 and the status of the most valuable player of that season. It was after his success in the MLS that Giovinco signed a contract with Al-Hilal in 2019. Note that last year the footballer ended his career.

This is an excursion into the Pro-League of Saudi Arabia, which existed before the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo. Today, it is a championship that has become more interesting for TV broadcasters, gaining popularity on social media, and increasingly attracting the attention of the global community. This summer's offseason will surprise us with high-profile transfers once again. The number of football stars there will be record-breaking. Thus, the new season can be called a new era of the Pro- League.