How Roberto Rivelino raised the bar for Saudi football
The Brazilian legend was the highest caliber of foreign footballers to have played in the Kindgom
He arrived in Riyadh by Concorde from Rio de Janeiro to be greeted by thousands of Al-Hilal fans at the airport before being whisked to his hotel by Rolls-Royce.
It was quite an entrance but then, in Aug. 1978, Roberto Rivelino was quite a player, one of the best and most famous in the world. By the time the Brazilian left Saudi Arabia three seasons later, football in the country had changed and would never be the same again.
Fans of Al-Hilal and other clubs are accustomed these days to watching exciting foreign talent in league action. But few have been as famous, influential or, to put it in simple football terms, as good as this Brazilian legend who made almost 100 appearances for the five-time World Cup winners. He was the first big star in a season that was the first to feature foreign players.
Just weeks before, Saudi football leaders had watched Iran become the first team from Western Asia to compete at the World Cup, but there was already a determination to bring some serious talent to a professional league that had only started in 1976. So in came the captain of Brazil, according to World Soccer magazine, the 38th best player of the 20th century. Here was a star who stood out alongside Pele and Jairzinho in the 1970 World Cup-winning team, hailed by many as the best ever. Fans in Saudi Arabia soon started to see just how good he was.
“It was almost amateur football at the time as football was really just starting there,” Rivelino said in a Brazilian television interview last year, before Al-Hilal took on Rio club Flamengo at the FIFA Club World Cup. “We trained at the same stadium in which we played the games. There were three teams in Riyadh and so we trained from 6 to 7 p.m., the next team from 7 to 8 and then the third from 8 to 9.”
The star had been part of the Brazil national team that played a friendly in Saudi Arabia ahead of the 1978 World Cup when conversations started about a possible move. “I talked to my family and then decided to go. It was my first time to play outside Brazil and, though the culture and country was very
different, it was a special time for me.” Progress was already being made in a country that had a population of just 9 million at the time. Rivelino enjoyed driving a Mercedes in Saudi Arabia — owning one had been a lifelong dream — and he also enjoyed the pristine condition of the country's artificial pitches. He did, however, find the weather difficult to adapt to at first, playing with a wet cloth in his mouth to try and retain as much moisture as possible.
The Brazilian linked up with Tunisian striker Nejib Limam, and they were imperious as Al-Hilal marched to the league title. It was clinched by the Brazilian in fine fashion during the penultimate game against challengers and rivals Al-Nassr. Rivelino pounced on a loose ball well outside the area and lashed home an unstoppable half-volley to score the only goal of the match. The first and only defeat of that season came in the final game with the trophy safely in the cabinet. It was joined by the King's Cup the following year.
“He made it look so easy but he worked hard to make it look easy,” said Limam. “At first defenders were in awe of him and that gave me opportunities, but he was consistently good and gave local players a taste of what you need to be a world-class player. It is not just about talent but mentality.”
Despite often playing deep in midfield, Rivelino scored 23 goals in fewer than 60 appearances for Al-Hilal. His set-piece skill has yet to be surpassed and he thrilled fans by scoring directly from a corner against Al-Ittihad. But there was more to it than that. For foreign players, especially in growing leagues, impact cannot be measured by statistics.
Rivelino raised standards on and off the pitch. Being the first Brazilian to play professionally in the region, he opened the door for players from the South American nation to follow and Zico, another midfield legend, almost arrived. Many did come, coaches too, and they have played their part over the years.
Few, though, could have the impact of Rivelino. “It was a good place to play football and I played well. I trained hard and I worked hard and it was a good time,” he reflected.
He felt that, by the time he retired in 1981, he could still have done a job for a hugely talented Brazil at the 1982 World Cup even though he was in his mid-thirties. “They should have come to see me play but, today, you can play in Saudi Arabia and the national team still remembers you but it was different then.”