Riyadh (dpa)
Al Hilal Saudi players and the club president expressed their happiness at being crowned champions of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Cup.
Al Hilal was crowned for the second time in a row and the eleventh in its history with the title of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Cup after defeating Al Nasr 5-4 on penalty kicks after the end of regular and extra time in a 1-1 draw.
The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Cup title was the third local title won by Al Hilal in the season, having previously won the Roshan League title and the Diriyah Saudi Super Cup.
At first, Fahd bin Nafel, club president, praised the high level of the final match, which reflected what Saudi football had reached.
Ben Nafel congratulated his players for winning this match, which was difficult and witnessed a large amount of colored cards, causing the scenarios to change. The match witnessed the expulsion of three players: David Ospina, Al Nasr goalkeeper, Kalidou Koulibaly and Ali Al Bulayhi from Al Hilal.
Regarding his candidacy for a new year with Al Hilal, Bin Nafel said: “Working for Al Hilal makes me happy, but it is a difficult job that takes you away from everything. We will discuss it in the coming days before the elections, and then I will make my decision.” For his part, Serbian Aleksandar Mitrovic, Al Hilal striker, confirmed that his team won a well-deserved title after a match in which the players played with great fighting spirit against Al-Nasr, who congratulated his players for the great level they presented.
Mitrovic said after the coronation: “It was a very wonderful night for the fans, but it was difficult for the players. I congratulate Al-Nasr for their struggle until the end, and they could have won the match.”
Mitrovic added: “Everyone gave their best with a fighting spirit, especially the Al Hilal players who faced difficult circumstances during the match, but we dealt with them successfully.” Regarding Al Hilal achieving a historic treble this season, Mitrovic said: “It is a wonderful thing, but it will not stop the team, which will strive next year to achieve the quadruple and compensate the fans after losing the Asian title.”
Moroccan Yassine Bono, Al Hilal’s goalkeeper, expressed his happiness in leading his team to win the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Cup, stressing that all the players gave their best despite the difficulty of the match.
Bono added that Al Hilal faced difficult circumstances due to the two expulsions, but the players gave their utmost effort to complete the match and stay in it.
Bono said that Al Hilal is more than just a team as it has the character to overcome any difficult or volatile scenarios, which everyone witnessed in this match.
As for whether winning the local treble compensates for the loss of the Asian title, Bono said that Al Hilal was determined to achieve all the titles this season, but this is football, and in the end, Al Hilal achieved an exceptional season.
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