Mohammad S. Abdeli


Mohammed bin Saad al-Abdali was a Saudi footballer who played striker. His career spanned around 15 years, during which he scored 57 goals across 53 friendly's matches, and 130 goals across 132 official matches with Al-Nassr. He is known as one of the best players to play for Al-Nassr, he was the top goal-scorer for the first Saudi League. He was born in Taif, Saudi Arabia.

Early life

Al-Abdali was born in Taif, Saudi Arabia, He was fond of football from a young age,
Once an incident occurred where Al-Abdali was playing a match in the Central area of the Taif region with his friends, Abdali needed a player to fill in for the goalkeeper for the opposing team, so he brought his friend who played as their goalie. During the game he shot a powerful shot which hit his friend, which caused him to faint and then pass away the same day. Al-Abdali was then arrested but released.
This incident got the attention of Saudi newspapers who wrote about him, and this caught the eye of Al-Nassr, who signed him.

Club career

Al-Abdali started playing for Al-Nassr in 1967. He became the first top goal-scorer of the Saudi League with 13 goals in the 1974–75 Saudi League, and also scored in the final game of the league.

International career

Al-Abdali played for the Saudi national team in the 1970s. He made his debut at the 1970 Gulf Cup, where he scored a goal against Kuwait in a 1–3 loss. He couldn't participate in the 1972 Gulf Cup due to a injuiry, however he played in the 1974 and 1976 editions.

Death

Al-Abdali died on 7 February, 2020.

Honours

Al-Nassr

Individual