Beloved Al Hilal hero Bafetimbi Gomis has urged the people of Saudi Arabia to “follow the rules” and treat the battle against coronavirus like “one final game”.
Gomis, 34, has been unable to play since the 2019/20 Saudi Professional League was postponed last month in a bid to curb the disease’s spread. There are currently 2,385 cases and 34 deaths recorded in the Kingdom, according to Google statistics.
This pandemic has caused stringent measures to be enacted there, with 24-hour curfews in operation for various parts of the country. Speaking on the 2019 AFC Champions League holder’s Twitter page at his home in Riyadh, Gomis urged compliance with the authorities demands.
“I hope you are good with your family at this difficult time,” said the ex-Lyon, Marseille, Swansea and Galatasaray striker. “As you see, I stay at home, I need you to stay at home.
“I do some exercise, watch some TV series, I follow the rules of Saudi, talk to some family, friends and team-mates.
“I have a message for you: let’s think we have one final game, a very important game for our country, and our opponent is the virus.
“But we have a very important and big coach: it’s the Ministry of Health. And if we listen to the ministry and follow the rules, we will kill the virus, together as a united country.
“Let’s do this, guys. We have to follow these rules again.
“Take care, I love you. We are all responsible and we will kill this virus, this is the way, Inshallah.”
Former France centre forward Gomis has netted 63 times in 77 run-outs since August 2018’s €7 million switch from Gala. He was top scorer when Hilal ended a 19-year wait to become Asian kings once again last November, struck 14 times in 18 top-flight matches this term to send his employers top and has grown a legion of Saudi fans on social media with his love of ‘gahwa’ (Arabic coffee).
