Kalidou Koulibaly has revealed the euphoria that greeted Al-Hilal’s 4-3 victory over Manchester City in the Round of 16 of the 2025 Club World Cup at Camping World Stadium in Orlando on Tuesday, describing it as a proud moment for the team.
The Senegal national team captain featured prominently in the game, scoring a crucial goal that ensured that the Saudi Arabia side send the defending champions packing from the competition.
Koulibaly explained that his side prepared adequately for the competition and is pleased to have shocked the “best team in the world.”
“Scoring a goal against Manchester City in a tournament of this magnitude is amazing. We faced significant challenges, but we gave everything we had, and we feel overwhelming joy with this victory,” Koulibaly said after the game.
“We knew the match would be difficult against the best team in the world. We wanted to showcase our ideas, skills, and everything we prepared for this encounter.”
“We provided strong defense and effective attack, and we capitalized on the available opportunities, and we are very proud of this achievement in a match of this level.”
Is Koulibaly’s display a one-off?
Koulibaly has been one of the consistent players in the world. He featured prominently for Metz in France, Genk in Belgium before moving to Seria A side Napoli, where he won many laurels, including the Coppa Italia.
The Senegal international featured in more than 30 games for Premier League side, Chelsea before moving to Saudi Arabia to continue his career.
What next for Al-Hilal?
Al-Hilal will hope to continue its unbeaten run in the competition against Fluminense of Italy at Camping World Stadium on Friday.
En route to the Quarter-final of the Club Wold Cup, the Saudi Arabia club played a draw with Spanish giants Real Madrid, held Red Bull Salzburg of Austria before sweeping aside Pachuca in the last group game.
What has been the greatest achievement of Al-Hilal so far?
Winning the Club World Cup this year will surely be a great feat for Al-Hilal, as the team has never won it. The team’s best performance so far was getting to the final of the competition, which Real Madrid won.
Al- Hilal has won many titles, including the Saudi Arabia Cup (11 times ), Saudi Crown Prince Cup (13 times), Saudi Super Cup (5 times), among many others.
