Al-Hilal received bad news during the last international break that three prominent players were injured before resuming their games against Al-Khaleej on Friday.
Brazilian striker Neymar came out in tears with a knee injury and left the stadium leaning on crutches during his country’s 2-0 loss to Uruguay in last night’s 2026 World Cup qualifier.
Al-Hilal announced that his Brazilian player, Neymar, had been cut with cruciate ligament and cartilage, for which he would be sidelined for several months. Neymar has recently joined the season from France’s Paris Saint-Germain in a record deal for the Saudi League of 90 million euros ($95.22 million
📄 أوضحت الفحوص الطبية تعرّض لاعب #كبير_آسيا "نيمار جونيور" لقطع في الرباط الصليبي والغضروف، على أن يجري عملية جراحية لاحقًا، وبرنامج علاجي يتحدّد مدته بعد العملية
يعود لنا أقوى 💙#الهلال pic.twitter.com/3B0w7C0W7T
— نادي الهلال السعودي (@Alhilal_FC) October 18, 2023
Al-Hilal did not reveal the possible duration of Timbukti’s absence or vulva, but coach Georgie Jesus hopes to quickly complete his ranks with fierce domestic competition and a desire to regain the AFC Champions League title.
Al-Hilal leads the league by one point from the cooperation and by four points from Al-Nassr, Al-litthad and Al-Ahly after nine rounds. He also shares the Champions League group lead with Navbahor of Uzbekistan by four points from two games.
Neymar (31) scored one goal in two Champions League games with Al Hilal while providing three assists during three
Timbuktu (24 years old) joined the crescent this season in a huge and controversial deal from his young domestic rival to strengthen the centre-back position of Senegal’s Kalidou Koulibaly and Ali Balehi and is also good at playing full-back.
Al-Faraj, 34, suffered a setback after returning from an injury, as he appeared to complain of hip muscle pain when he made an emergency exit before halftime against Mali, continuing to suffer after his role in the crescent declined this season.
But not all things were black for the blue team, with striker Aleksandar Mitrovic shining by scoring twice against Montenegro on Tuesday to bring Serbia closer to qualifying for Euro 2024 with compatriot Sergej Milinkovic Savic, and Portugal midfielder Ruben Neves playing for a few minutes as a substitute in the victory over Slovakia and Bosnia.
