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.
_(cropped).jpg) Al-Bulaihi with Saudi Arabia at the 2023 AFC Asian Cup | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ali Hadi Mohammed Al-Bulaihi | ||
| Date of birth | 21 November 1989 | ||
| Place of birth | Najran, Saudi Arabia | ||
| Height | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Centre-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Al Hilal | ||
| Number | 5 | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2011–2014 | Al-Amal | ||
| 2014–2015 | Al-Nahda | ||
| 2015–2017 | Al-Fateh | 47 | (1) |
| 2017– | Al Hilal | 134 | (13) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2018– | Saudi Arabia | 52 | (2) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17 May 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 22:07, 21 March 2024 (UTC) | |||
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.
Club career
Al-Bulaihi started his career at Al-Amal where he spent three years before joining Al-Nahda in 2014. On 23 July 2015, he joined Al-Fateh.
Al-Hilal
On 21 June 2017, Al-Hilal signed Al Bulaihi on a free transfer. He signed a three-year contract with the club.
In April 2024, in a derby match against rival team Al Nassr, he gathered some controversy after being elbowed by Cristiano Ronaldo after trying to intimidate him, resulting in a red card for Ronaldo and a yellow card for Al-Bulaihi.
International career
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In June 2018, Al-Bulaihi was named in Saudi Arabia's squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. He made his debut in the competition against Uruguay. In November 2022, he was called up for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. In the opening game, he played the whole match as his team defeated the eventual world champions Argentina 2–1.
In January 2024, he drew criticism for shoving and grabbing the hair of South Korean player Son Heung-min, unprovoked, during the 2023 AFC Asian Cup round of 16. Al-Bulaihi had previously similarly taunted Argentine player Lionel Messi by slapping him on the back.
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 20 January 2024
| Club | Season | League | King Cup | Asia | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Al-Fateh | 2015–16 | 24 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 26 | 0 | |
| 2016–17 | 23 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 33 | 2 | |
| Total | 47 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 59 | 2 | |
| Al-Hilal | 2017–18 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 10 | 0 | |
| 2018–19 | 25 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 47 | 5 | |
| 2019–20 | 14 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 26 | 2 | |
| 2020–21 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 3 | |
| 2021–22 | 22 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 35 | 3 | |
| 2022–23 | 22 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 32 | 2 | |
| 2023–24 | 17 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 31 | 2 | |
| Total | 121 | 12 | 14 | 1 | 45 | 4 | 23 | 0 | 203 | 17 | |
| Career totals | 168 | 13 | 17 | 1 | 51 | 4 | 26 | 1 | 262 | 19 | |
International
- Statistics accurate as of match played 21 March 2024.
| Saudi Arabia | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2018 | 11 | 0 |
| 2019 | 6 | 0 |
| 2020 | 2 | 0 |
| 2021 | 8 | 0 |
| 2022 | 13 | 0 |
| 2023 | 7 | 1 |
| 2024 | 5 | 1 |
| Total | 52 | 2 |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 September 2023 | St James' Park, Newcastle, England | Costa Rica | 1–2 | 1–3 | Friendly |
| 2 | 16 January 2024 | Khalifa International Stadium, Al Rayyan, Qatar | Oman | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2023 AFC Asian Cup |
Honours
Al Hilal
- Saudi Professional League: 2017–18, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22, 2023–24
- Kings Cup: 2019–20, 2022–23
- Saudi Super Cup: 2018, 2021, 2023
- AFC Champions League: 2019, 2021
Individual
References
External links
- Ali Al-Bulaihi at Soccerway