The two greatest football players in this generation and the generations to come faced each other for potentially the last time at Al-Fahd Stadium in Saudi Arabia. Lionel Messi's Paris Saint-Germain side faced off against Cristiano Ronaldo's Riyadh XI in an epic match of football.
https://twitter.com/brfootball/status/1616215130483597314?t=x6MflG8yVs-F9Da-EmxQ9g&s=19
The game began at 17:00 UTC in the Kingdom and lasted 90 minutes plus 11 in extra-time (both half and full-time included in this sum) and what a 100 minutes of football it was! The Riyadh XI put up a surprisingly strong fight against the behemoth that was PSG.
While both sides were worth an insane amount of money, PSG consist of some of the most iconic players of this generation such as Messi, Neymar, Sergio Ramos and rising stars such as Kyllian Mbappe. Riyadh XI may have lacked in the star power department but they had one player who is the only person that could rival Lionel Messi on the football pitch, Cristiano Ronaldo.
https://twitter.com/StokeyyG2/status/1616216166749409286?t=2ZTPMSqRX1Xlfu7R1XpQ4g&s=19
The Riyadh XI starting line-up was in a 4-2-2-2 formation which consisted of Al Owais in goal. Al-Ghanam, H. Jang, Al Bulaihi and Abdulhamid in defence. Al-Khaibari, L. Gustavo, G. Martinez and Al-Dawsari in midfield. And up-front in the attack was Marega and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The PSG starting line-up was in the classic 4-3-3 formation which consisted of Keylor Navas in goal. J. Bernat, Sergio Ramos, Marquinhos and Achraf Hakimi in defence. Renato Sanches. F. Ruiz and Carlos Soler in midfield and in the attack they had Kyllian Mbappe, Lionel Messi and Neymar.
Lionel Messi was the first person to score after being assisted by Neymar only in the 3rd minute of the game followed by a penalty scored by Cristiano Ronaldo in the 34th minute. Ronaldo scored again in the 6th minute of extra-time in the first half. After that, there were no more goals or assists for the two giants as Ronaldo was subbed off in the 61st minute of the game. Messi was subbed off in the 62nd minute after Ronaldo. The match ended in a 5-4 victory for PSG.
https://twitter.com/ESPNFC/status/1616179032663392257?t=VgeVlK69cxfpheHmmVSbKg&s=19
The match left both sides and all fans in good spirits. Even the losing side was satisfied with their performance against a team that so easily out-classes their own. The match also had its most powerful moment when Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo briefly interacted at one point during the game and embraced. The football world was struck at that moment by the realisation that it would be a long time, if ever, that rivals of such unbelievable talent would face off again.
https://twitter.com/brfootball/status/1616215130483597314?t=x6MflG8yVs-F9Da-EmxQ9g&s=19
Match Analysis (Summarised)
The game began at 17:00 UTC in the Kingdom and lasted 90 minutes plus 11 in extra-time (both half and full-time included in this sum) and what a 100 minutes of football it was! The Riyadh XI put up a surprisingly strong fight against the behemoth that was PSG.
Players to Watch
While both sides were worth an insane amount of money, PSG consist of some of the most iconic players of this generation such as Messi, Neymar, Sergio Ramos and rising stars such as Kyllian Mbappe. Riyadh XI may have lacked in the star power department but they had one player who is the only person that could rival Lionel Messi on the football pitch, Cristiano Ronaldo.
https://twitter.com/StokeyyG2/status/1616216166749409286?t=2ZTPMSqRX1Xlfu7R1XpQ4g&s=19
Starting Line-ups
The Riyadh XI starting line-up was in a 4-2-2-2 formation which consisted of Al Owais in goal. Al-Ghanam, H. Jang, Al Bulaihi and Abdulhamid in defence. Al-Khaibari, L. Gustavo, G. Martinez and Al-Dawsari in midfield. And up-front in the attack was Marega and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The PSG starting line-up was in the classic 4-3-3 formation which consisted of Keylor Navas in goal. J. Bernat, Sergio Ramos, Marquinhos and Achraf Hakimi in defence. Renato Sanches. F. Ruiz and Carlos Soler in midfield and in the attack they had Kyllian Mbappe, Lionel Messi and Neymar.
Match Timeline
Lionel Messi was the first person to score after being assisted by Neymar only in the 3rd minute of the game followed by a penalty scored by Cristiano Ronaldo in the 34th minute. Ronaldo scored again in the 6th minute of extra-time in the first half. After that, there were no more goals or assists for the two giants as Ronaldo was subbed off in the 61st minute of the game. Messi was subbed off in the 62nd minute after Ronaldo. The match ended in a 5-4 victory for PSG.
https://twitter.com/ESPNFC/status/1616179032663392257?t=VgeVlK69cxfpheHmmVSbKg&s=19
Aftermath
The match left both sides and all fans in good spirits. Even the losing side was satisfied with their performance against a team that so easily out-classes their own. The match also had its most powerful moment when Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo briefly interacted at one point during the game and embraced. The football world was struck at that moment by the realisation that it would be a long time, if ever, that rivals of such unbelievable talent would face off again.