Son Heungmin is strong too? Saudi can recruit anyone...Al Hilal's grounded confidence

Jun 17, 2025

Son Heung-min composite photo. Source = One Football

Vinius composite photo. Source =Football365

Simonay In Self Al Hilal, new director. REUTERS Yonhap News

In an interview with Esteve Calzada, CEO of Saudi Arabia's rejection club Al Hilal, we were able to get a glimpse of the ambitions and visions of the Saudi soccer community.

Asked about the transfer of Real ace Vinicius to Al Hilal in an interview with the Spanish daily `Marca' on the 17th (Korea time), Chairman Kaljada said, `Would it be surprising that Vinicius is going to Saudi Arabia at this point? The Saudi league can recruit any player.'

He doesn't think "When we want a player, 'I won't call him because he won't want to come." do one's best. Anyone is capable of persuading, and clubs are ambitious. It's not just about money. The important thing is the direction of the project and the league."

"You can dream of anything in this league," he added.

Saudi soccer is gathering the world's top players, starting with Cristiano Ronaldo (Al-Nasr) and Neymar (Santus). Among the best existing players, players who do not have a link with Saudi Arabia are considered in the hands. Son Heung-min (Tottenham), Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain), and Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich) also had links to Saudi Arabia.

CEO Esteve Calzada Al Hilal. Source = Marka homepage capture

Among the current players at Al Hilal are former Manchester City full-back João Cancelo, former Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic, former Wolverhampton midfielder Ruben Neves, former Barcelona striker Malkon, former Sevilla goalkeeper Bunu and former Chelsea centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly. Al Hilal's team, which appointed former Inter Milan head coach Simone Inzaghi after the 2024-2025 season, has a value of 158.3 million euros (about 24.9 million won).

Chairman Kaljada recalls the early days of Manchester City. At the time, the OOO player was always offered by Manchester Cityhave been told " The same thing happens in Saudi Arabia now. All transfer rumors include Saudi Arabia. Sometimes it's true. We are actively engaged in the transfer market" he said.

On Vinicius's alleged entry into Saudi Arabia "Saudi Pro League CEO admits discussions with Vinicius"I'm not sure if Vinicius will come to Saudi Arabia now. What I can say for sure is that there was no direct contact, and that there were many false articles."

Al Hilal will play Real Madrid in the first group match of the FIFA Club World Cup in 2025 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on the 19th. Chairman Kaljada said "Real is an opportunity to introduce and inform Al Hilal. Al Hilal is a prestigious club with 42 million fans, and this is not the first time Al Hilal has appeared in the world."

Al Hilal belonged to Group H, such as Real, Salzburg, and Pachuca.

This article was translated by Naver AI translator.