Video snark and a Saudi league bite: Walid Al-Farag targets a Shabab fan over Hilal and Nassr

Media snark and the rivalry

Saudi sports broadcaster Walid Al-Farag mocked a Shabab fan for comparing the club to Riyadh's two giants, Al Hilal and Al Nassr.

Shabab celebrated its first win under new coach Nordine Ben Zakri, defeating Damak 3-1 on Friday in the 23rd round of the Roshen Saudi Pro League.

During his show "Action with Walid" on MBC Action, Al-Farag shared the fan's message claiming the club had been dismantled for other franchises—Qadisiyah, Neom, Durayya, and Al-Ula—and thus could not compete with the two giants.

He then reviewed Shabab's league position, quipping that Al-Hazm, Al-Fath, Al-Fayhaa, Al-Khaleej, Al-Ettifaq, and Al-Taawoun were better than Shabab.

He added that putting your head against Hilal and Nassr makes the competitive edge seem to exist only under certain conditions in the past, but times have changed.

Finally, he suggested that Shabab would need to be bought out like Hilal or Nassr, or that the club has been dismantled, insisting that's not a sane mindset and advising the fan to quit cheering if they feel hostility toward any journalist who speaks the truth.

Punchline 1: If football rivalries were calories, that fan would be running on a treadmill of wishful thinking.

Punchline 2: And if arrogance were a trophy, he'd have a whole shelf of participation medals.