Brazilian Winger Malcom Completes Surprise Transfer to UAE Side Al Jazira After Leaving Al Hilal

Brazilian winger Malcom has completed a surprise move from Al Hilal to UAE Pro League side Al Jazira. The 29-year-old revealed his switch on social media on Friday before any official announcement had been made by the 21-time Saudi Pro League champions. Hours later, Al Hilal's official statement confirmed they had agreed to terminate Malcom's contract, bringing an end to his successful three-year spell in Riyadh.

His arrival represents a major coup for the Abu Dhabi club, who started their new campaign with a 2-0 win at Hatta last Sunday after finishing last season in fourth place, 24 points shy of champions and double winners Al Ain. Jazira are now managed by former Al Ain, Shabab Al Ahli and Sharjah coach Cosmin Olaroiu following his exit from the UAE national team job in May.

Malcom joined Al Hilal from Russian outfit Zenit St Petersburg in 2023, making 139 appearances for the capital club, scoring 47 goals and providing 41 assists. During his time in Saudi Arabia, he helped Al Hilal win the SPL title in his first season—scoring 15 goals—and lifted the King's Cup twice as well as the Saudi Super Cup on two occasions.

Born in Sao Paulo, Malcom started his career at Corinthians before moving to Bordeaux in France, where he won the Ligue 1 goal of the season award in 2017/18. He then secured a €41 million transfer to Spanish giants Barcelona, featuring under Ernesto Valverde alongside Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, and Ousmane Dembele, winning a La Liga title and scoring in El Clasico against Real Madrid.

Following his time in Spain, Malcom moved to Zenit St Petersburg in a €40m deal, enjoying a trophy-laden spell in the Russian Premier League with three league titles, one Russian cup, and four Russian Super Cups before his €60m move to Al Hilal. At Al Hilal, he played alongside Kalidou Koulibaly, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Ruben Neves, and Neymar.

On the international stage, Malcom earned two Brazil caps in 2023 and secured an Olympic gold medal in 2020 after scoring a brilliant extra-time winner for Brazil in the final against Spain in Tokyo.