RIYADH: It was not quite as shocking as Eric Cantona joining Manchester United from then champions and rivals Leeds United in 1992, or Luis Figo ditching Barcelona for Real Madrid in 2000, but the sight of former Al-Nassr star Abderrazak Hamdallah popping up on Al-Ittihad’s social media feed last week did make fans around the country sit up and take notice.
“I’m very happy to join Al-Ittihad, a great club, with great supporters. I aspire to pursue the glory of past Moroccan players with the club,” the striker said.
He arrived in Jeddah on Monday to formally complete the deal and, assuming all goes well, the 31-year-old will be eligible to play from the start of 2022.
Have Al-Ittihad just secured themselves the title? Many will think so.
As the halfway stage of the season approaches, the Tigers are top with a game in hand over Al-Shabab in second and Damac in third. The Jeddah giants will be keeping an eye on defending champions Al-Hilal who are four points back.
There is no doubt that there is still a lot of football to be played but it is also clear that the league leaders have just massively increased their firepower.
With Al-Nassr, the team that Hamdallah joined in 2018, he was quick to make his mark, finishing as the league’s top scorer in the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons, with a return of 34 and 29 goals, respectively. Hugely impressive figures such as those — he was also top scorer in the 2020 AFC Champions League — made the North African one of the most feared marksmen outside of the big European leagues. In total he scored 112 goals in 107 games for the Yellows and also contributed a not insignificant 24 assists. Those statistics are simply fabulous.
That is why there has been interest from all over the world since his recent release from Al-Nassr. The relationship between player and club has been strained for some time and there are various reasons and reports as to why this was. What is clear however is that Al-Nassr decided to cancel Hamdallah’s contract on Nov. 23 without giving an official reason.
His move to Al-Ittihad does seem to have come as a surprise to the Riyadh club but former Al-Nassr player Ibrahim Al-Issa believes that a clean break was needed.
“After the many problems that came from Hamdallah and the failure to reach an agreement with the administration, his exit was the best solution. The club is bigger than anything else and their interest is the most important thing and this decision works for both team and player,” Al-Issa said.
That remains to be seen. With interest from Boca Juniors, Raja Casablanca, and clubs in Turkey and Egypt, it is likely that Al-Nassr would have preferred the sharpshooter to go and play overseas. Not just Al-Nassr — as other teams in the title race will surely not want to see Hamdallah, one of the Arab world’s top strikers in recent years, go to the SPL leaders.
Al-Ittihad already have one of the league’s top forwards in Romarinho, though the Brazilian plays a little deeper than Hamdallah. The idea of the new Moroccan star linking up with Igor Coronado, one of the most skillful players in the league, indeed the whole region, is a scary one. Not only can Coronado score, but he is a creator supreme, and top of the assist charts this season with eight. It could be a deadly combination: South American creativity and North African accuracy.
For Al-Ittihad coach Cosmin Contra, Hamdallah’s arrival will be a boost as the team have scored plenty of goals this season but have been reliant on the two Brazilians — as well as the aerial threat from central defender Ahmed Hegazi — for goals. New French striker Youssouf Niakate has failed to find the target since joining on loan and his position is now uncertain. Another source of goals will be welcome.
For Al-Ittihad there has been a worry that there has not been a league title since 2009. For one of Asia’s biggest clubs, that is too long and there is a danger of a dry spell becoming a mental burden and it may already be so. The Tigers need to get their hands on the trophy sooner rather than later and with the club not being involved in next year’s AFC Champions League, unlike title rivals Al-Shabab and Al-Hilal, who also have the FIFA Club World Cup in February, this is a great chance for Al-Ittihad to become champions for the first time in 13 years.
The signing of Hamdallah does not guarantee that but he almost certainly guarantees goals. That spells bad news for the rest of the Saudi Professional League.
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