Amazing Middle East Football Experience | OneFootball

Arsenal Invincible Jeremie Aliadiere has told Liverpool Saudi transfer targets Mo Salah and Virgil van Dijk they will not regret a move to the Middle East if they decide to leave Anfield at the end of the season.

The French forward made his Arsenal debut in an away win against Liverpool and spent two of the best years of his career in Qatar.  He will attend the latest meeting between the two great Premier League rivals when they clash for the first time this season, in London this weekend.

Reports  and rumours of interest in striker Salah and defender van Dijk persist despite their clear commitment during Arne Slot’s brilliant start to his managerial start in the north west.

And Aliadiere, now working on his coaching badges and a regular in the Arsenal press box on matchdays, says he would not advise any player against trying the Arab football experience.

He said: “It is down to the individual but when you are being offered ten times the salary you can earn at a big club in Europe and you are at the end of your career you think ‘God! I can’t not accept that.’

“I had an awesome two years there. It has always been a destination I’ve wanted to go to. I’ve gone to Dubai every summer for 20 years. Family wise and outside of the pitch was absolutely fine.

Aliadiere moved from French side Lorient to Qatari club Umm Salal ten years ago and was a regular scorer there for two seasons.

Speaking as an ambassador for William Hill Vegas (https://vegas.williamhill.com/) he added how there were adjustments to be made on the playing side back then.

“Adapting to the football was a bit difficult because in Europe we are very professional about everything we do. When I arrived I realised it wasn’t professional in that sense. Players not turning up for training and making excuses. One didn’t turn up because he had to take his mum to the airport. But I didn’t want to drop my standard as this is how I’d been all my career and I learned to adapt it to their way.

“To be honest it was not really planned. I expected to go there later in my career. I was at Lorient scoring a lot of goals and I expected a bigger club to come and sign me. Nothing happened and when it didn’t, my mind changed. They offered me an incredible deal, I realised a big club won’t come for me anymore so I had to prepare for the end of my career.”

Since then, Aliadiere has watched the game boom as Qatar has faced challenges for players from leagues in the UAE and most recently Saudi Arabia.

“I’m not really surprised how the game has developed out there,” the 41-year-old added. “It’s all about prestige in the Middle East, so they will always compete against each other. Saudi is obviously financially on a different level, and it was just a matter of time until they decided to press the button and go big time.

“I think they’ve let Qatar and the United Arab Emirates bring players for years, until they decided, ‘alright, it’s time for us to go in now.’ And who better to bring than Cristiano Ronaldo to start it all with. “

Looking ahead to the fortunes of his former club against the might of Salah and his fellow Liverpool forwards, Aliadiere tipped Liverpool to drop points. And heis hoping Arsenal Starboy Bukayo Saka will be fit enough to play a key role in the match.

He concluded: “For me I will always pick Saka. Even when he’s not having a great game there’s always something coming out. Always a goal or assist. He’s becoming such a name now that players are consuming their brain on Saka.  It’s like ‘oh my god we have Saka today’. Just by that he’s leaving freedom for his teammates.

“I think Liverpool have started really well but they will drop points at some stage. They have a great starting XI and I do not think they will be right up there at the end of the season. I might be wrong! Who knows?”