Two former English football stars, Rio Ferdinand and Jamie Carragher, have engaged in a fiery social media exchange concerning the increasing involvement of Saudi Arabia in football transfers.
In a video shared online, Ferdinand accused Carragher of hypocrisy regarding Saudi Arabia’s growing investment in football.
The Middle-Eastern country’s investments in football clubs and players have become a significant topic of discussion within the football community.
Ferdinand specifically questioned Carragher’s silence regarding the transfer of their former teammate Steven Gerrard, who was recently appointed as the new manager of Al-Ettifaq on July 3rd.
The argument between the two former players highlights the ongoing debate surrounding Saudi Arabia’s influence on the football industry.
“Jamie. Jamie Carragher. Where are you, man? I heard a lot of talk, a lot of negativity about Saudi. Oh, Bernardo Silva, I can’t believe it. It’s a disgrace, it needs investigating, this league, et cetera. Steven Gerrard’s gone.
“You used to carry his boots and his bag at Anfield to games. Your boy’s gone over there and I’ve not heard a peep out of you. I’ve not heard how disappointed you are. I want to see him say “I can’t believe Stevie’s gone there”.
‘I’m actually buzzing for any of the guys that have gone out to Saudi. Because it’s Saudi, people are going mad, but all these other countries and leagues over the years have done exactly the same thing”, Ferdinand said in the video.
Carragher also took turns to hit back at the comments and cited Ferdinand’s questions silence over Qatar during the 2022 World Cup.
“Never criticized Silva, [Karim] Benzema, [Ruben] Neves or SG, I don’t like Saudi trying to buy football like they have Golf”, he tweeted.
“I knew you’d be all over it @rioferdy5 like you were in Qatar! That’s why you refused to do the opening game for @BBCMOTD didn’t want to criticize your paymaster!”, he added.
Saudi Arabia football is one of the fastest-growing competitions in world football and its vast wealth and recruitment have been the dominant story of this summer’s transfer window.
Notable among football stars who have made the Saudi Pro League one of the most talked about is Portuguese International Cristian Ronaldo who plays for Al-Nasr, Karim Benzema, and N’golo Kante who both joined AI-Ittihad in June. Roberto Firminho from Liverpool to Al-Ahli.
Others are; Ruben Neves from Wolves to Al Hilal, Jota from Celtic to Al-Ittihad, Marcelo Brozovic from Inter Milan to Al Nassr, and Kalidou Koulibaly and Edouard Mendy from Chelsea respectively to Al Hilal.