Julius Okorie
Fans getting impatient over inability of Brazil international Neymar to return to football action, booed the former PSG talisman as he exchange pleasantries with tennis great Rafael Nadal.
The occasion was at the Saudi Arabia’s ‘6 Kings Slam’ tournament on Thursday night.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelThe football megastar joined Public Investment Fund (PIF) owned Al-Hilal in 2023 to bring an end to his Paris Saint-Germain nightmare in a £78million move that came as something of a shock.
The Brazilian forward is thought to be on eye-watering money in the Saudi Pro League and was one of the divisions biggest coups, penning a three-year deal that is reportedly set to earn him some £26m-a-year.
As one of the most famous faces in football in the last decade, he might expect to become something of an overnight celebrity in Saudi Arabia, however judging by the response to his recent appearance, the opposite would appear to be true.
After coming out onto the court at the ‘6 Kings Slam’ event, he was booed loudly from fans assembled in the 8,000-seat purpose built arena called The Venue.
There were even audible chants of ‘Ronaldo! Ronaldo’ with Cristiano Ronaldo being a huge success unsurprisingly in Saudi Arabia after his own move to Al-Nassr.
The Brazilian was then seen chatting to Rafael Nadal, who was beaten in straight sets 6-3 6-3 by compatriot Carlos Alcaraz in his round of the exhibition tournament.
READ ALSO :Transfer News:Neymar Completes Al-Hilal Move In Huge $400m Deal
Despite making headlines for his decision to move to Saudi Arabia, Neymar has still only actually played three top-flight games for his new club.
In that time he did look to be settling in quickly, with three assists in as many games, however his progress was quickly halted by a serious injury.
He missed 271 days last season after being injured in his first few Al-Hilal appearances and subsequently needing to undergo corrective surgery that has required extensive rehabilitation.
Neymar could however soon return to action at Al-Hilal when as he continues to step up his recovery efforts.
Back to the ‘6 Kings Slam’ tournament ,Jannik Sinner defeated Carlos Alcaraz 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-3 to win the Six Kings Slam exhibition Saturday after Novak Djokovic topped Rafael Nadal 6-2, 7-6 (5) in the third-place match.
The competition saw winner Jannik Sinner pocket $6m (£4.6m) which is the largest pot in tennis history, even as other competitors
Novak Djokovic, Holger Rune, Daniil Medvedev, Alcaraz and Nadal take home at least $1.5m (£1.15m).
Nadal was making one of his final ever appearances on a tennis court, having announced his imminent retirement from the sport.
His final outing will be at the Davis Cup representing Spain in November, bringing an end to a breath-taking career as arguably the greatest to ever pick up a racket.
Before heading to Saudi Arabia, Neymar was part of the Musketeers at PSG made up of Mbappe,Messi and Neymar. Interestingly the trio have all left the French league giants.
Messi headed for the Major soccer league, Mbappe off to dream team, Real Madrid and Neymar sealing a deal with Saudi League side Al-Hilal
Julius Okorie is Chief Sports and Entertainment Correspondent for Prime Business Africa. He began his journalism career with the Champion Newspaper and Sporting Champion and later moved on to Daily Independent and the Nation Newspapers. Okorie joined Prime Business Africa in 2024 bringing on board 20 years of experience in writing investigative news on Sports and Entertainment. His well researched and highly informative articles on Sports Business and general entertainment are followed by a wide range of audience.
