The former Brentford striker may have missed out on England’s qualifiers but believes the standard of Saudi football cannot be ignored
I
van Toney is aware of the outside noise. He hardly needs reminding that plenty of people have had their say since he swapped the Premier League for the Saudi Pro League just over a year ago. An Asian Champions League winner’s medal and 35 goals for Al-Ahli later, the striker is defiant, even if he found himself on the outside as England played their latest World Cup qualifiers.
“Those that know me, know that I do what I want to do,” Toney says. “If there is something that I want to go for, to try, then I will do it. If people want to talk, they can talk. It doesn’t hurt me, doesn’t bother me, I just concentrate on myself. I do what makes me happy.”
Toney is talking from Jeddah, where the temperature is forecast to be above 40C this weekend. He says he enjoys the beaches and restaurants of a city he describes as “more chill” than Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh. He did, though, need time to settle by the Red Sea after his move from Brentford.
