Lane Kiffin rekindles Texas A&M football beef with tweet about Saudi Arabia, Pep Guardiola

Let's play fill-in-the blank featuring Ole Miss football coach Lane Kiffin, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola and the international soccer transfer market.

Kiffin on Saturday tweeted an ESPN link to Guardiola's comments on the influx of money spent by Saudi Arabia's budding soccer league.

Start there first. The Saudi Pro League, an anonymous league in the scope of international soccer until very recently, signed superstar Cristiano Ronaldo last winter to a large contract despite the player's age (38) and recent play, and the league has continued to pay large wages and transfer fees for household European soccer stars like N'Golo Kanté, Jordan Henderson, Roberto Firmino and more.

At least four of the SPL's teams are owned by the country's Public Investment Fund, the sovereign wealth fund controlled by the country's ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. It's the same fund that has bankrolled LIV Golf.

Guardiola said Friday, in reference to City losing winger Riyad Mahrez to the SPL in an above-market deal: "Saudi Arabia has changed the market."

" ... In the future, there will be more, and that's why clubs need to be aware of what is happening. Riyad got an incredible offer, and that's why we could not say, 'Don't do it.' "

Back to Kiffin, who tweeted this on Saturday: "Pep Guardiola - Saudi money has changed transfer market - ESPN. Sounds like what ….. … did!" Kiffin finished the tweet with the thinking emoji.

That begs the question: Who was Kiffin referring to?

The Clarion Ledger is not in the business of reading minds, but that thinking is not shared by the users of X, formerly known as Twitter, in making assumptions about Kiffin's weekend word play.

Texas A&M does fit perfectly in the blanks, with five dots followed by three dots. And it's not out of place for Kiffin in the past 18 months.

Kiffin was not alone in the criticism of Texas A&M's aggressive recruiting and NIL tactics in signing the top 2022 recruiting class, but he was among the loudest. Last offseason, Kiffin wondered aloud if the Aggies had to pay a "luxury tax" in signing the class. Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher called coaches spreading unproven rumors "clown acts," certainly referring to Kiffin, and held an impromptu news conference later in the offseason after Alabama coach Nick Saban said at an event in Birmingham that "A&M bought every player on their team."

Kiffin referenced it all after the Rebels won at Texas A&M last season.

"When someone attacks you personally and calls you and your good buddy Coach Saban both clowns, you take that personal," Kiffin said after Ole Miss' 31-28 win in October. "I'm glad we won. I guess I can be a clown for Halloween now."

The SEC's divisional schedules end after this season, but Kiffin vs. Fisher continues to be a regular occurrence that won't end soon.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Lane Kiffin rekindles Texas A&M beef with tweet about Saudi Pro League