Great game that took place at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh. Al Hilal beat Inter Miami 4-3 in a preseason friendly that had everything: Brazilian goals, the debut in the nets of Luis Suárez with his new uniform and an active participation of Lionel Messi.
The hosts took a two-goal lead in a flurry of attacks thanks to goals from Aleksandar Mitrović at 10′ and Abdullah Al-Hamdan at 13′. Twenty minutes later came the first cry for Suárez, the Uruguayan former FC Barcelona and Grêmio, with suspense, since VAR had to be resorted to for a non-existent offside.
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Shortly before the end of the first half, Michael’s goal appeared to make it 3-1 in favor of those from Saudi Arabia. The former Flamengo celebrated it with Cristiano Ronaldo’s famous Siu.
Gerardo Martino’s team overcame the deficit in the second half with a penalty converted by Messi and a right-footed shot to the near post by Honduran David Ruiz. When it seemed that everything was ending in a tie, it was Malcolm who made it 4-3 in the 88th minute, seconds after Messi was substituted.
Well, we took it easy 🤝🏻
It’s FULL-TIME.#AlHilal 💙#RiyadhSeasonCup ✨ pic.twitter.com/RvybsLiCB8— AlHilal Saudi Club (@Alhilal_EN) January 29, 2024
In Neymar’s team, out while recovering from a torn cruciate ligament and meniscus in his left knee, Renan Lodi started. The Brazilian left back joined the team led by Jorge Jesús less than two weeks ago and signed a contract until 2027 in an operation estimated at 23 million euros.
For its part, Inter Miami remains unbeaten in its first three games of this preseason. The MLS club’s next friendly will be on Thursday against Al Nassr in a long-awaited reunion between Messi and the Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo on a playing field.
