In a surprising move, Senegal's football stalwart, Kalidou Koulibaly, has sealed his transfer to Al Hilal from Chelsea, marking the latest star addition to Saudi Arabia's rapidly growing football sphere.
Koulibaly, who carved a name for himself as one of Europe's top defenders, made the switch to Saudi Arabia's most successful club, Al-Hilal, only a year after he joined Chelsea from Napoli. However, his stint with the London-based club didn't meet the high expectations, with Chelsea finishing a disappointing 12th in the Premier League last season.
The 32-year-old center back has inked a three-year contract with Al Hilal, but no financial details have been disclosed. Although British media estimates suggest a transfer fee of around £17 million ($21.61m), Al Hilal's official announcement did not confirm this figure. His move comes on the heels of another Al Hilal acquisition, Ruben Neves, a Portugal midfielder from Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Koulibaly's departure is part of a broader exodus from Chelsea, with several key players rumored to be seeking new pastures. The list includes household names such as Kai Havertz, Mason Mount, Hakim Ziyech, Edouard Mendy, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, and Romelu Lukaku.
Following his transfer, Koulibaly tweeted, "From my first game to my last, it was an honor to wear this badge. Last season wasn't the one we wanted, but I want to thank the fans and everyone at the club for your support."
The Saudi Professional League has seen a surge in prominent Europe-based players since Cristiano Ronaldo's move to Al-Nassr. With Al-Hilal among the leading recruiters, the club has recently been linked to Manchester City's Bernardo Silva.
The Saudi football scene's ambitious drive to recruit top players from Europe aligns with its vision of globalizing the sport. With Chelsea's Koulibaly now wearing the Al-Hilal badge, the narrative of Saudi football's meteoric rise only gets more intriguing.
