"Gulf Messi" Omar retires, cruciate ligament injuries ended the West Asian prodigy

Written by Han Bing In the early hours of November 7th Beijing time, 34-year-old "Gulf Messi" Omar declared his retirement. Ten years ago, he was considered Asia’s leading football talent. In 2012, he almost signed with Manchester City, and in 2013 FIFA recognized him as Asia’s brightest future star. By 25, he had won AFC Champions League MVP and Asian Footballer of the Year awards, shining brightly. Sadly, multiple cruciate ligament injuries stopped him from reaching global superstar status. Since becoming unemployed in January 2024, he reluctantly hung up his boots.

Omar hails from a Saudi expatriate labor family of Yemeni descent, belonging to the Amudi tribe from Yemen’s Hadramawt region. Born in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s capital, he was influenced by his father, a former player. Omar, along with his two sisters and three brothers, all chose football. As a child, Omar was quickly spotted by renowned scout Isa, and at age nine, he impressed during trials with Riyadh Crescent’s youth academy.

In 2005, since Riyadh Crescent was only willing to grant Saudi citizenship to Omar himself, his father declined the contract. In 2006, Isa recommended Omar and his two brothers to UAE powerhouse Al Ain, where they successfully trialed at Al Ain’s training camp in Germany. Al Ain agreed to grant citizenship to the entire family, and the three brothers immediately joined the club.

In 2009, at 17, Omar made his first-team debut. By 2010, not yet 19, he became a starter wearing the No.10 jersey, helping UAE win the men’s football silver medal at the Guangzhou Asian Games. During the 2011/12 season, after an impressive performance at the London Olympics, stars like Suarez and Giggs sought his jersey. Soon after, he underwent a two-week trial with Manchester City. Although he could not sign due to work permit issues, he became the first UAE player sponsored by Nike.

At that time, Al Ain was dominating domestically and aiming for the AFC Champions League title, unwilling to let Omar leave cheaply. After winning the Gulf Cup with UAE in early 2013, Al Ain repeatedly rejected offers from Benfica and Arsenal. In 2015, amid interest from European clubs like Galatasaray and PSV Eindhoven, Al Ain extended Omar’s contract until 2018 with a net annual salary of $4 million. The citizenship requirement for his family and the highest Middle Eastern player salary became the biggest barriers to his European move.

2015 and 2016 marked Omar’s peak years. Early 2015, he helped UAE secure third place in the Asian Cup, gaining global recognition as the "Gulf Messi." By the end of 2016, he won the AFC Champions League runner-up with Al Ain, consecutively claimed UAE league and Arab Player of the Year honors, and capped the year by earning both AFC Champions League MVP and Asian Footballer of the Year awards.

Omar’s skills were refined, excelling in both passing and shooting, with outstanding set-piece ability—truly deserving the "Gulf Messi" nickname. In domestic leagues and the AFC Champions League, he delivered impressive stats: 3 goals and 23 assists in 28 games (2013/14), 5 goals and 20 assists in 36 games (2015/16), and 13 goals and 18 assists in 32 games (2016/17).

Unfortunately, injuries struck at a critical point in Omar’s career. The cruciate ligament was his lifelong nightmare. In July 2009, just before turning 18, he suffered his first ACL tear, sidelining him for eight months. In June 2011, another ACL tear kept him out for six months. Afterward, he became injury-prone; even during his assist-leading 2013/14 season and the 2014/15 league-winning campaign, he was injured five times, missing 16 league and AFC matches combined. In summer 2018, Al Ain, seeing his form decline, sold Omar to Riyadh Crescent for a record $12.5 million.

At the end of August 2018, Omar again tore his ACL, missing the early 2019 Asian Cup and only returning in September 2019. That summer, he transferred to Dubai Youth National but struggled, and after just one season was loaned to Abu Dhabi Peninsula. In October 2020, after only two league appearances, Omar suffered another ACL injury, returning to play in November 2021 but relegated to a substitute role.

In summer 2022, Dubai Youth National terminated Omar’s contract a year early. He then joined Dubai Contact FC but failed to score or assist in his first 10 matches and was subsequently almost completely sidelined. In the 2023/24 season, Omar only appeared twice in the league, each time playing a humiliating single minute.

In January 2024, Omar was released again, marking the end of his professional career. Though he wanted to give it another try, after 20 months without a club, he had no choice but to announce his retirement, closing his story in a poignant manner. Omar is regarded as one of the most gifted No.10s in the UAE and the Arab world, but fate cruelly denied him the chance to become a legend.