RIYADH — In an official announcement, Al-Hilal Football Club announced that it had acquired Serbian striker Aleksandar Mitrovi from Fulham.
After protracted negotiations with Fulham authorities, who at first showed a strong desire to keep their talented forward, the trade was finally completed. However, the player's desire to join the Saudi League and the tenacity of Al-Hilal's negotiators were key factors in finalizing the agreement in the Blue Club's favor.
Following talks with Nigerian forward Victor Osimhen of Italian club Napoli, Serbian attacker Mitrovi surfaced as a contender for Al-Hilal in recent weeks.
However, Mitrovi, with whom an agreement had already been made, came into focus as a result of Napoli's management's refusal to split ways with their striker.
Sky Sports reports that Mitrovi received a three-season contract with the capital's blue team for a rumored transfer fee of $58 million.
Mitrovi, who will turn 29 in September, displayed his talent last season as one of the English Premier League's top forwards.
He played in 24 games and scored an astounding 14 goals for Fulham. The Serbian striker's legendary campaign, nevertheless, took place in 2021–2022, when Fulham was competing in the English Football League Championship.
He played in 44 games during that time, scoring 43 goals and providing 7 assists for a total of 50 goals in 44 appearances.
Mitrovi's professional career began in 2011 with Serbian club Teleoptik, and it continued in 2012 for a single season with Partizan.
He joined the Belgian team Anderlecht in 2013, and in 2015, he transferred to Newcastle United in the English Premier League.
After that, he signed with Fulham in 2018, staying with them for six years until Al-Hilal announced his signing in the summer of 2023.
Mitrovi gained the moniker "The Record Breaker" after helping Fulham to the Championship title in 2022 and setting a new mark for goals in a season with 43.
In the summer transfer window, Al-Hilal was active, signing six international players before acquiring Mitrovi.
Among them are the Brazilian midfielder Malcolm de Oliveira from the Russian club Zenit Saint Petersburg, the Portuguese midfielder Robin Neves, the Senegalese defender Kalidou Koulibaly, the Serbian midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic from the Italian club Lazio, the international Brazilian star Neymar, and the Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou.
