Al-Hilal star, Ali Al-Bulayhi has joked that he will hide if Lionel Messi joins the team because the two had a fight during the 2022 World Cup.
Al-Bulayhi has claimed that his status at Al-Hilal may be in jeopardy if Messi were to execute a spectacular move to the Middle East, with the Argentine having the option of asking for him to be dropped from the team.
When Saudi Arabia upset the eventual champions 2-1 in their group stage opening in Qatar, Al-Bulayhi and the legendary South American squared off, with the 33-year-old defender inciting the most illustrious of foes.
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Al-Bulayhi has told SBC as rumours rage regarding a possible move to Al-Hilal for Messi: “I do not know what will happen, and I am afraid that he says, ‘I do not want number five.’ I do not know if Messi will come or not, but if he comes, may God protect me! If he comes, God willing, I will not attend the first two days until I monitor the situation from afar so that he may forget me.”
Al-Bulayhi thinks he learned valuable lessons from facing Uruguayan strikers Edinson Cavani and Luis Suarez in 2018 and that he relished facing Messi, who helped pull off one of the biggest World Cup upsets ever.
He added: “After [the] Uruguay match, I will not ever be afraid even if I face three Messis. Messi is a legend and I do not want to talk about him, as he may come. He is a legend, but in the end we are 11 against 11.”
Despite rumors of a record-breaking $498 million contract in Saudi Arabia, a probable return to Barcelona, or a fresh start in Major League Soccer, Messi has yet to decide where he will play next as his contract with Paris Saint-Germain expires
