It seems only a matter of time before Hakim Ziyech signs a lucrative contract with Al-Nassr. The attacker cum midfielder has fallen out of favor with Chelsea for a while and can secure the financial future of himself and his family in Saudi Arabia. Football zone took an advance on the mega deal and talked to compatriot and former professional footballer Ali Boussaboun.
By Mart Oude Nijeweeme
If there is anyone who can empathize with Ziyech’s situation, it is Boussaboun. The former player of Feyenoord, NAC Breda and FC Utrecht, among others, once made his way to the Middle East. Boussaboun played in Qatar for Al-Wakrah and in the United Arab Emirates for Al-Nasr. “When I went to the Middle East I was thirteen years old. I thought: what do I want? My goal was always to play for a top club in the Netherlands. That worked at Feyenoord. After that I started setting new goals,” says Boussaboun.
According to Boussaboun, if clubs come along that put astronomical amounts on the table, the choice is quickly made. “We are bread football players. We also have children and families. I recognize that, you have a lot of responsibility,” said the former striker. “Of course he will lose prestige. He also knows that. On the other hand, he has already achieved everything. Champions League, Premier League, World Cup, Africa Cup. He has done everything there is to do. Not that Ziyech has not earned enough before, But these are amounts you can’t refuse.”
Boussaboun speculates about an astronomical annual salary of 25 million euros. “Let’s say he will earn 75 million euros net in three years. Then he will still be 32 (33, ed.) And he can always go back to the Netherlands. We must not forget that this is his career. We also play football to earn money. If I had been in his shoes, I would have also looked at the possibilities. If there was no club that I would like to go to in terms of size and level, then I understand that he will cash in.”
Promes
According to Boussaboun, the fact that Ziyech recently made a trip to Moscow to visit his good friend Quincy Promes does not have to detract from his reputation. “I think everyone has a friend who is not quite okay in the eyes of others. I believe in second chances. Everyone makes mistakes, even our Prime Minister. Promes also made a stupid mistake by letting his aggression prevail Do you, as Ziyech, have to throw the friendship overboard completely and shut him out completely?”
According to Boussaboun, it doesn’t work that way. “It is incomprehensible to me that Promes does such a thing. Let me put that first. He has an exemplary function. What are you doing to yourself? But it is Ziyech’s friend. Someone with whom he is very close is. Should he then write him off for an incident that Ziyech has nothing to do with? I don’t see that logic. I think it’s very normal. That’s friendship, brotherhood. People make mistakes. To drop him immediately… Then it was never a friendship.”
Boussaboun also believes that the move to the Middle East should not have any consequences for Ziyech’s international career. “I know the national coach (Walid Regragui, ed.) And I know how charmed he is by Ziyech. We should not pretend that the difference between the Saudi league and the Eredivisie is so great. We want to make that mistake quickly. There are many players that people would have liked to see play in Europe, but who are not feasible because they choose the big money. It is really not a Micky Mouse competition. We should not underestimate it.”