Trezeguet Injury Sparks Fury Among Al-Riyadh Fans

Mahmoud Hassan "Trezeguet" needed only a few weeks in Saudi Arabia to become a central figure at Al-Riyadh. On Friday, he managed to dominate the conversation without kicking a ball.

Hours before Al-Riyadh’s Roshn League trip to face Al-Ahli at Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Sports City Stadium, the club posted its starting XI and bench on X. One name was missing. The one many fans most wanted to see.

No Trezeguet. Not even among the substitutes.

The reaction was instant. The comments under the club’s post filled up with angry replies and pointed questions. Supporters demanded to know how their Egyptian winger, the headline signing of the summer, could simply vanish from the squad with no explanation.

Confusion turned to irritation because, only a day earlier, everything had looked routine. On Thursday, Al-Riyadh’s official channels had shared images from the final training session before the Al-Ahli game. Trezeguet appeared in those photos, involved as normal, part of the preparations for one of the toughest away trips of the season.

So when the line-up dropped without him, fans sensed something was wrong and felt shut out of the story.

The answer emerged from the stadium itself. Reporting from Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Sports City Stadium, the correspondent for Thmanyah, the broadcaster carrying the Saudi league, confirmed that Trezeguet’s absence was due to injury. No tactical snub. No late disciplinary twist. An injury, and with it a sudden hole in Al-Riyadh’s attacking plans.

For a club still finding its feet in a rapidly strengthening Roshn League, losing a player of his profile on the day of a marquee fixture cuts deep. Trezeguet arrived this summer from Egypt’s Al-Ahly, after just one season there, as a statement addition for Al-Riyadh and a key part of their attempt to keep pace in a league stacked with star power.

Instead of watching him test himself against Al-Ahli under the floodlights, Al-Riyadh fans were left refreshing social media, piecing together information and venting their frustration.

The injury explains the omission. It does not soften the blow.