Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — Portuguese midfielder Ruben Neves revealed that his family members were at the forefront of his decision to join Saudi Pro League Club Al-Hilal.

In his first official interview at Hilal, he said that the project presented by Al-Hilal and the Saudi Professional Football League was an important factor in his transfer.

“The club and the league presented a good project. My agent had the chance to speak to a lot of people involved in the Asian leagues and it was an easy decision to make,” he said.

“I wanted something new for my career, something else for my career. And when this chance came, I spoke with my family and everyone was really happy to come, so that was easy for me. The main factor was my family and the chance to give them the life I have always dreamt of for them – that was the biggest reason for me to not have any doubts,” he said while pointing out: “I have three kids and a lovely wife, and I need to take care of them, that is the biggest trophy in my career.”

The Portuguese international, aged 26, made the lucrative move last month from English Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers, signing a three-year contract with the Saudi Pro League club. The transfer fee was reported to be around $60 million. Al-Hilal also signed Serbian Sergey Milenkovic-Savic from Lazio and Senegalese defender Kalidou Coulibaly.

Neves said that he came to know about Al-Hilal through a number of Portuguese players and coaches who have been in Saudi Arabia. “But, of course, like I told you, the project of Al-Hilal being the best club in Asia, the biggest club in Asia ... all the fans as well. Since the news started to come my social media went crazy. It was unbelievable to see the amount of fans Al-Hilal have and how passionate they are for football, so it was a good decision for me and my family, I’m sure.”

Last season, the Riyadh-based Al-Hilal finished third in the Saudi Pro League, 13 points off champions Al-Ittihad, while they were also runners-up in both the FIFA Club World Cup and Asian Champions League. “My biggest goal is giving my best, giving my 100 percent to help the team to achieve their goals,” Neves said.

“Because, as we all know, we are the biggest club in Asia, so we will fight for every single title, and we will try to do our best to win every single one as well. That's my main goal: win titles, win trophies with the team, and to give the fans reasons to be even more happy at the end of the season.”

The Portuguese star praised the work of the Saudi Pro League officials to develop the tournament. “The main goal of the league is development and the officials are doing a good job and we see all the new players joining all the league teams, not just the big ones. There are Portuguese players who are my friends, who join the league, and in the first year we see the work of the league leaders.”

Referring to the return of Jorge Jesus as the coach of Al-Hilal, Neves commented: “The team is trying to develop not only at the level of the players, as Jesus is a great coach and made achievements everywhere he went and previously worked here.” Neves spoke about his former team Porto, which wears white and blue colors, such as Al-Hilal. “Since childhood, my favorite team was Porto that wears blue and white like Al-Hilal, and this is a good thing. We will fight to win every championship. Our main goal is to win titles and make the fans happy,” he said adding, “my only promise is to give everything I have to try and help the team achieve its goals to win the most trophies.

It is noteworthy that Portuguese Coach Jorge Jesus is returning to train Al-Hilal for a second period. The club has reappointed him as its coach on a one-year deal. Former Benfica manager Jesus previously managed Al-Hilal in 2018-19 when he led them to a Saudi Super Cup win over rival Al-Ittihad in his first game in charge.

In his first period, Jesus spent a brilliant period of six months at Al-Hilal during which the squad suffered only one defeat, but he was dismissed due to disagreements with the administration.

Neves represents one of a number of top-level players to have already traded Europe for Saudi Arabia this summer. Within a short span of time, Saudi Arabia has established a prominent role in the world of soccer.

Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema joined former Real Madrid teammate Cristiano Ronaldo in moving to the Saudi Pro League earlier last month, in what is expected to be the first of many moves for European stars.

N'Golo Kante, France’s World Cup-winning midfielder, also turned down a contract extension at Chelsea to join Benzema at Al-Ittihad, the defending Saudi Pro League champions. The Portuguese Jota also joined Al-Ittihad while Brazilian Firmino, former Liverpool striker, and Senegalese Edouard Mendy, former Chelsea goalkeeper, have signed with Al-Ahli of Jeddah.