Ali_Al-Bulaihi
Ali Al-Bulaihi
Saudi Arabian footballer (born 1991)
Ali Hadi Mohammed Al-Bulaihi (Arabic: علي هادي محمد البليهي; born 21 November 1989) is a Saudi who plays as a centre-back for Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal and the Saudi Arabia national team.[4]
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Al-Bulaihi has gained reputation of constantly trash talking and taunting the opposition players. In January 2024, he drew criticism for physically abusing opposing forwards like shoving and grabbing the hair of South Korean forwards Son Heung-min and Hwang Hee-chan, unprovoked during the 2023 AFC Asian Cup round of 16 clash. Al-Bulaihi had previously similarly taunted Lionel Messi and Robert Lewandowski by slamming on the back during their fixtures in the 2022 FIFA World Cup and also on Luis Suárez. He also did similar instances in club level as well. Most notably in multiple occasions against Cristiano Ronaldo during the Riyadh derby games in the Saudi Pro League and did the same against Hakim Ziyech at 2022 FIFA Club World Cup.[5][6]