Super Eagles of Nigeria striker, Odion Ighalo has lifted the lid on his exit from Saudi Premier League champions, Al Hilal as he revealed that the club didn’t extend his deal due to their plans to bring in Lionel Messi to the team.
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Lionel Messi who is an ambassador of Saudi Arabia turned down a mega offer from Al-hilal following his exit from PSG in favor of a move to David Beckham’s Inter Miami.
The former Manchester United forward revealed that the offer presented to Messi was too good to refute as the Argentine will be earning twice what his long-term rival, Cristiano Ronaldo earns with Al-Nassr but he made a U-turn on the switch for a move to MLS.
“I’m shocked Messi didn’t go to Saudi Arabia because it was part of the reasons my contract was not being extended [with Al-Hilal]. I thought it was a done deal,” Ighalo stated.
“The money they were offering him in Saudi [Arabia] was crazy. He was going to earn twice what Ronaldo was earning. I was shocked he didn’t go there. He chose Miami.”
Ighalo is without a club following his release from Al-hilal and with the twist of events, it’s very unlikely the club will still get him back on after failure to get the 2022 Qatar World Cup winner.
