Sami Al-Jaber says Neves deserves Al-Hilal captain’s armband

Sami Al-Jaber believes Ruben Neves deserves to wear Al-Hilal’s captain’s armband. The club great praised the Portuguese player’s importance to the team, after Neves captained Al-Hilal in Tuesday’s 2-0 win over Al-Sadd in Doha, in the second round of the AFC Champions League Elite’s league phase. He took the armband after Mohammed Kanno went off.

Al-Jaber said the choice also reflected the club’s custom: « At Al-Hilal, the armband usually goes to the club’s own sons. Today, Nasser Al-Dawsari is the only son of the club, but with a player of Ruben Neves’s stature and importance, he is the one who should wear it. » He also stressed that the Portuguese player performs several important roles within the team.

On Salem Al-Dawsari, Al-Jaber said he needed to return stronger, with competition for attacking places now particularly intense. He recalled that when Summerville’s incident occurred during the match against Al-Gharafa, leading to a 3-match suspension, Salem could have taken his opportunity had he been there. « He would have done very well and would not have been inferior to Summerville; he has to fight for it, » Al-Jaber said.