Al Ittihad's striker whipped by fan following 4-1 loss to Al Hilal in Saudi Super Cup final
A fan at the Saudi Super Cup final whipped an Al Ittihad striker Abderrazak Hamdallah after a confrontation following the team's 4-1 loss to Al Hilal earlier this week in Abu Dhabi’s Mohammed Bin Zayed Stadium.
The outrageous moment was captured on video by another fan who shared the footage on social media, Sportstar reported.
The video shows Hamdallahthrowing water from a bottle at the fan after a confrontation. The fan then responds by pulling out a long whip and lashing at the Moroccan footballer twice.
It appeared that the fan hit the player's back the second time he lashed his whip. A young fan in a wheelchair was nearly caught in the middle of the altercation.
The 33-year-old footballer's teammatesstepped in and attempted to take him away while the fan was guided away by another spectator and a security official.
Hamdallah, who hadscored his team’s only goal during the game after missing a penalty, did not appear to be injured.
In the video, the fan did not appear to be detained.
Former Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema who plays for Al-Ittihad was not involved in the incident.
In 2023, the Super Cup was expanded toinclude the runners-up from the competition and the King’s Cup and was also moved to Abu Dhabi, extending its scope from a single game to two.
Hamdallah, who reached the 2022 Fifa World Cup semifinals in Qatar on the Morroco team, came on as a substitute in three group-stage games and is in his sixth season playing in Saudi Arabia.