RIYADH — Brazilian football superstar Neymar has expressed immense pride in his Al Hilal teammates for clinching the Roshn Saudi League title, despite his absence for most of the season due to injury. The forward is also eagerly anticipating his return to the pitch next season. After transferring from Paris St Germain to Al Hilal last summer, Neymar's season was cut short due to a cruciate ligament injury sustained in October while on international duty. Prior to his injury, Neymar had made three league appearances, contributing three assists, helping Al Hilal to two wins and a draw. His last appearance before the injury, a 2-0 victory against Al Shabab at the end of September, initiated what would become a world record streak for Al Hilal, winning an incredible 34 consecutive matches. Following Al Hilal's decisive 4-1 win over Al Hazem, which secured their 19th Saudi league title, Neymar shared his sentiments during the celebration: "I am very happy obviously. Winning titles is always good. The best thing would have been being on the pitch, but I am so happy for my teammates." He continued: "I am fine. I am feeling good. I am impatient to be back on the pitch. The fans are unbelievable. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to give them the happiness they deserve but you can be sure that next season we are going to have a lot of fun." Al Hilal has maintained an unbeaten record domestically this season, securing the league title with three games to spare. The team's exceptional performance has seen them win 29 of their 31 games, with their nearest challengers, Al Nassr, trailing by 12 points. Al Hilal is set to face Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr in the upcoming Riyadh derby on May 17 at Al Awwal Park. Earlier this season, Al Hilal broke the record for consecutive top-flight victories, surpassing the previous record held by Welsh club The New Saints, who won 27 consecutive games in the 2016-17 season. Before that, the record was held by Ajax with a 26-game winning streak from 1971 to 1972.
