Al Ittihad claim Saudi title and Israel U20s make history - Middle East Round-Up

With just two more rounds of fixtures to go, Saudi Pro League's matchday 28 had a dramatic set-up for Middle Eastern football fans, with all games being played simultaneously.

Al Ittihad needed a victory at Al Fayha to guarantee its first Saudi league title in 14 years, while Cristiano Ronaldo and Al Nassr played away at Al Ettifaq and needed to grab a victory and hoped Itti wouldn't win - a difficult task, but possible. 

Well, in any other year it would have been, but the 2023 Al Ittihad side knows what it has to do and executes it.

Ahmed Shahrahili struck first for Ittihad, Romarinho doubled before halftime and put the last nail in the coffin of the title race, making it 3-0, in a ground they had lost in on their previous four visits.

Meanwhile, Ronaldo struggled to inspire Al Nassr against Al Ettifaq, as the Nassrawys finished the game in a 1-1 draw, with the star being substituted in the 84th minute. 

Now, with only one match left in this Saudi season, the shining project the Portuguese talisman started in Riyadh faces its first failure: missing out on the Saudi League title in its first season.

Although Ronaldo did provide the goals - 14 in 16 matches - the team needed to gel properly to become championship material, and it didn't.

While many rumours send Ronaldo back to playing European football next season, the fact that he did not guide Al Nassr to a desired title in the league is likely to motivate Ronaldo to stay in the gulf for a little bit longer.

After Ronaldo pushed for Rudy Garcia's removal as Al Nassr's coach, reports across Europe and the Middle East claimed a lucrative offer was made to Zinedine Zidane to become his replacement.

According to the same information, the latter has declined a possible $150M contract in Riyadh.

Right now it’s not clear where this Ronaldo-Al Nassr project is heading - the summer will have the answer.

Mabrouk kbir to Al Ittihad 🇸🇦 who won their 1st championship title in 14 years, this weekend.

Nuno Espírito Santo and Itti were the best team, have prevented CR7 a title in his first SPL season and sent millions to celebrate across KSA. #ITTIMANIA @i24NEWS_EN #الاتحاد 🟡⚫️🐅 pic.twitter.com/dveb5WYLIC

— Uri Levy (@Levyninho) May 29, 2023

Israel U20s make history in Argentina

Israel completed a historic 2-1 victory over Japan in the U20 World Cup group stage.

After a loss against Colombia in the first match, and a draw with Senegal in the second, Japan seemed like a tough opponent for the Israelis, and the game started well for them.

Japan scored on the verge of the halftime whistle via Isa Sakamoto.

In the 68th minute, the Israelis were left with ten men after substitute Ran Binyamin got sent off with his second yellow card in three minutes, only seven minutes after he entered the game.

That looked like the end of the story, but not for Ofir Haim’s players.

With a tremendous effort, Roy Nawi equalised in the 76th minute, and deep into stoppage time, Omer Senior made it 2-1 after a fantastic team play and an assist by Dor Turgeman.

An Israel win saw them become the first team in their country’s history to make it to the Word Cup knockout stage in any age group. 

Meanwhile Japan bids farewell to the tournament, while the Israelis will face Uzbekistan in the round of 16.

After a rare success in the U19 Euros last year, and a turbulent saga with Indonesia that has influenced this tournament, this young Israel side is writing another historic moment into their national team’s history book.

Against all the odds, Israel passed the test and qualified from one of the toughest groups 🇮🇱🇮🇱🇮🇱 👏👏👏#U20WC pic.twitter.com/dz1NPJ0JU1

— BabaGol (@BabaGol_) May 28, 2023

 Is Omer Atzili on his way to the UAE? 

Maccabi Haifa's Omer Atzili is attracting interest and offers from two of the UAE's top clubs, according to reports in Israeli media.

Both Al Ain and Shabab Al Ahly Dubai are interested in the star Israeli winger. 

Atzili finished last season as the Israeli Premier League MVP, after he scored 22 goals and 10 assists.

In Haifa's impressive Champions League group stage campaign, Atzili was one of the main characters, and he even scored a brace in their momentous 2-0 victory against Juventus. 

Atzili's agents were quoted saying that both clubs had agreed to activate his release clause, which is nearly $2.5m (£2.02m).

At Maccabi Haifa, the expectation is that Atzili will stay, especially since the player signed a new contract just a few months ago, and the club has helped immensely in reviving his career after a police investigation into reports he had sex with underaged teenagers a few years ago. That case was ultimately closed by police.

If Atzili heads to the Emirates, he will be the first Jewish Israeli player to do so since Dia Saba's successful spell at Al Nasr Dubai and Abdallah Khalikhal's less considerable time at the same club.

Edited by Alex Smith

Could a Jewish Israeli soccer star join a club in the UAE?@Levyninho of @BabaGol_ joins to discuss Omer Atzili's future, the Israeli U20 National Team's historic win, and Cristiano Ronaldo's failure in his first season in Saudi Arabia#MiddleEastNow | @laura_i24 pic.twitter.com/2zMCHVB5Jy

— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) May 28, 2023