Predicting where a Saudi Pro League all-star team would finish in the PL ft Mbappe | OneFootball

Kylian Mbappe might be leaving Paris Saint-Germain soon.

Reports have linked the French attacker with a move to Real Madrid, and PSG even suspect there is a deal in place for the player to join Los Blancos in 2024.

But he could be on the move before next year, with PSG unwilling to lose the 24-year-old on a free transfer and putting him up for sale.

They have since received an offer from Saudi Pro League side, Al-Hilal, reportedly worth £259 million, and the French team have given the player permission to enter talks.

If Mbappe completes the switch to the Saudi club, it will add even greater star power to the league.

Karim Benzema, N’Golo Kante, and Roberto Firmino are just three players to have made the switch this summer.

They have all followed in the footsteps of Cristiano Ronaldo, who joined Al-Nassr last season.

So, with multiple stars now plying their trade in the Middle East, how would a Saudi Pro League all-star team fare in the Premier League?

We have picked out some of the biggest names in the division, including some potential arrivals too, and have given our verdict on how they would fare as the 21st Premier League side.

Feel free to let us know if you would make any changes to the team or if you think it would finish elsewhere in the league table in our social media comments. But for now, here is our Saudi Pro League all-star team.

Assembling the Saudi Pro League all-star XI

GK: Edouard Mendy (Al-Ahli)

Mendy was once considered one of the best goalkeepers in Europe, and during the 2020/21 campaign, he was named UEFA Goalkeeper of the Season as Chelsea lifted the Champions League.

He would continue to excel between the posts for Thomas Tuchel but found himself sitting on the bench during the 2022/23 campaign after the German coach was sacked.

The 31-year-old joined Al-Ahli for a reported fee of £16 million in June.

Denayer was on Manchester City’s books at one point but would spend multiple seasons out on loan and did not make an appearance for the senior side.

He was sold to Lyon in 2018 and would go on to play 139 times for the French club.

Denayer has earned 35 caps with the Belgium national team, but the 28-year-old recently signed for Al-Fateh.

CB - Ahmed Hegazi (Al-Ittihad)

West Brom fans will remember Hegazi all too well, with the Egyptian defender playing 104 times for the Baggies.

He joined Al-Ittihad in 2021 and has since played 82 times for the club, even helping his side finish as champions last season.

Hegazi is also an experienced international, having made 83 appearances for the Egyptian national team.

Having been one of the Serie A’s best defenders for multiple seasons, Koulibaly would make the switch to Chelsea last summer.

But he would struggle to adapt to life in the Premier League, and the Blues would sell him after just one season in English football.

Make no mistake though, Koulibaly is still an excellent defender. He featured in the Series A Team of the Year multiple times and helped Napoli lift the Italian Cup during the 2019/20 campaign.

LB - Alex Telles (Al-Nassr)

Telles arrived at United in 2020 and went on to make 50 appearances for the Red Devils.

But he was not in Erik ten Hag’s plans and spent last season on loan at Spanish club Sevilla where he won the Europa League.

The Brazilian returned to Manchester but has now joined Al-Nassr on a permanent deal.

Neves’ move to Al-Hilal came with a fair amount of surprise, especially because of past links to Barcelona.

But signing the Portuguese midfielder is a huge coup. He is just 26 years old and has made 41 appearances for the Portugal national team.

He is also capable of a spectacular effort every now and then, so Al-Hilal fans will definitely see some special goals next season.

CM - Marcelo Brozović (Al-Nassr)

Brozović had spent seven years at Inter, joining permanently from Dinamo Zagreb in 2016 and going on to make 330 appearances for the Serie A side.

During his time in Italy, the Croatian would win the Scudetto during the 2020/21 season and would complete two cup doubles in the subsequent seasons.

He made the switch to Al-Nassr earlier this month for a reported £15 million, with the 30-year-old signing a three-year deal.

CM - N'Golo Kanté (Al-Ittihad)

Kante established himself as one of the best midfielders in the world after joining Leicester City in 2015 and helping them lift the Premier League trophy.

He would cement that legacy when he signed for Chelsea. During his seven-year stay at Stamford Bridge, Kante would make 269 appearances, lifting the Champions League, Premier League and multiple cups too.

He was even crowned Premier League Player of the Season during the 2016/17 season.

Injuries have limited his game time in recent seasons, which ultimately led to him departing for Al-Ittihad this summer, but on his day, Kante continues to be absolutely phenomenal.

We have massively jumped the gun here, and according to some reports, Mbappe would prefer to sit on the PSG bench rather than move to Al-Hilal.

But given all the attention on the move, we just had to put him in the team.

Signing Mbappe would cost a fortune, but bringing one of the best players in world football to the league would be the biggest statement yet for the Saudi Pro League.

He is a World Cup winner, six-time Ligue 1 champion, and someone who has scored an incredible 212 goals for PSG in 260 games.

LW - Cristiano Ronaldo (Al-Nassr)

On the opposite flank, we have another one of world football’s biggest stars.

Ronaldo made the move to the Al-Nassr after falling out with Erik ten Hag at United. And although his side were not crowned champions last year, Ronaldo still had an impressive campaign, scoring 14 goals in 16 matches.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has previously stated that he believes the division can be one of the best in the world. And with so many talented players joining this summer alone, maybe they are just a few years away...

ST - Karim Benzema (Al-Ittihad)

This spot could quite easily have been Roberto Firmino’s but we could not leave the Real Madrid icon out.

Benzema joined Los Blancos in 2009 and would go on to score 354 goals for the club, helping them win five Champions League trophies and four La Liga titles too. An absolutely absurd resume.

The 2022 Ballon d’Or winner ended his 14-year stay at the Bernabeu this summer when his contract expired, with ESPN reporting that he has been offered a two-year deal worth €400 million.

What about the bench?

There were so many players to pick from that not everybody could have made the team, so we have included a substitutes bench as well.

As a backup goalkeeper, we have former Arsenal man David Ospina. The 34-year-old made 70 appearances for the Gunners and joined Al-Nassr in 2022.

Leeds United fans will recognise Ezgjan Alioski. Having left Elland Road in 2021, he now plays for Al-Ahli.

He is joined by Marcel Tisserand, who started at Monaco before later plying his trade in the Bundesliga with Wolfsburg. He now plays for Steven Gerrard’s Al-Ettifaq.

The middle of the pitch is much more stacked, with former Lazio midfielder Sergej Milinković-Savić an option off the bench.

The Serbian midfielder moved to Al-Hilal earlier this month after eight years in Italy.

Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson also gets a spot on the bench. He is expected to complete a move to Al-Ettifaq.

The 33-year-old has completed his medical and looks set to end his 12-year stay at Anfield.

Another Liverpool icon also joins Henderson on the bench in Firmino.

The new Al-Ahli man spent eight years in the Premier League, and during that time he weighed in with 190 goal contributions.

And substitute seven is current Man City winger Riyad Mahrez.

While the transfer is not yet complete, The Athletic report that Al-Ahli have agreed a deal worth £30.4 million to sign the 32-year-old.

Mahrez was an integral part of City teams that have dominated the Premier League in recent years and leaves after their sensational treble-winning season.

Who’s in charge?

A good team is nothing without a good manager though.

We could have gone for Nuno Espirito Santo here, given that he was in charge of an Al-Ittihad side which won the league last season.

But instead, we have opted for Al-Hilal’s new manager, Jorge Jesus.

The Portuguese coach led Benfica to three league titles and has also lifted silverware with Sporting and Fenerbahce.

He also won the Saudi Super Cup with Al-Hilal when he first managed the club during the 2018/19 season.

Predicting where this team would finish in the Premier League

Now we come to the difficult part though, and although there are some huge names in this squad, we think they are slightly let down by their defensive options.

Koulibaly is an excellent defender, but would the other options be able to do a job in the English top-flight now? Arguably not. Mendy would likely be a very busy goalkeeper.

What we can guarantee from this team though is loads of goals, with the attacking trio all lethal when given a chance.

And the midfield is pretty good too, with all three starters capable of winning the ball back and playing killer passes forward.

The depth is decent too, so we think on balance, the all-star team probably has enough to avoid a relegation battle.

It would likely finish in the top-half of the table too, but without some defensive improvements, qualifying for European football, especially the Champions League, might be tricky.