Al Hilal’s experienced defender, Ali Al-Bulaihi, has been hitting the headlines for all the wrong reasons. During the Riyadh Derby LAST Friday, where his team convincingly outperformed Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr, he Al Hilal star clashed with Ronaldo and his teammate, Alex Telles.
However, the referee penalised the defender with a second yellow card in the closing minutes of the game for provoking rival fans.
As per Al Riyadiya, the Disciplinary and Ethics Committee of the Saudi Football Federation will suspend him for one match due to his red card in the Al Nassr game. Consequently, he will be absent from Al Hilal’s Saudi League match against Al Tai on Friday.
During the match, Cristiano Ronaldo of Al Nassr seemed visibly displeased with the officiating and suggested bias towards Al Hilal. While Ronaldo expressed his discontent with the official, the Saudi Arabian defender stepped in and continued verbally engaging with him.
Despite the rival's fiery response, Ronaldo remained composed. However, this incident marked the beginning of Al Bulaihi’s disruptive behaviour. Subsequently, he targeted Al Nassr’s Alex Telles, who was on the bench.
Following Al Hilal’s sealing of Al Nassr’s fate with a third goal, Al Bulaihi instigated Al Nassr's fans. Ultimately, referee Wilman Roldan issued a second yellow card in the 93rd minute, ejecting the 34-year-old from the game.
Even prior to this action by the Saudi Football Federation, Al-Bulaihi had attracted considerable criticism for his actions against Cristiano Ronaldo. Nevertheless, engaging in verbal altercations and on-field confrontations is not unfamiliar territory for him. Long before his encounter with Ronaldo, he clashed with Lionel Messi during the 2022 World Cup.
In 2022, Lionel Messi led Argentina to their third World Cup triumph. However, their remarkable campaign began with a surprising loss to Saudi Arabia. Tempers flared, and Messi engaged in a heated argument with the Saudi Arabian star. The latter, while leading a winning game, vehemently confronted Messi. Al-Bulaihi recalled warning Messi that Argentina would never defeat Saudi Arabia unless they showed respect towards the Saudi team.
A year later, in a similar situation, Al-Bulaihi found himself facing off against Ronaldo. Perhaps the jubilation after winning against formidable opponents led the player to be somewhat reckless. However, this time, his recklessness was met with a stern warning.