Joshua scored a destructive knockout on his return to the ring on Saturday night to set up a fight with Tyson Fury - but not everyone was pleased with his performance

Anthony Joshua has been brutally told he is 'shot to bits' just seconds after rendering Kristian Prenga unconscious on his return to the ring.

The 36-year-old watched long-time rival Tyson Fury win on Friday night, and had to follow it up with a victory himself on Saturday night to make their highly-anticipated all-British showdown official. But he nearly saw the fight fall apart after he was dropped just seconds into the opening round by Prenga.

A stunned Joshua looked all over the place in the early exchanges of the opening stanza, and nearly fell to the canvas for a second time, but was eventually saved by the bell. Prenga allowed Joshua to take control of the second round, and was made to pay when 'AJ' went in for the knockout.

Joshua sent his Albanian rival crashing to the canvas with a destructive left hand, securing an inspiring win Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. But not everyone was convinced. Boxing coach Dave Coldwell offered a rather brutal take on the fight, posting: "Joshua is without a doubt shot to bits. Punch resistance looks completely gone. Last thing a fighter loses is his punch and that’s what got him out of jail tonight."

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Prenga was moments away from scoring a truly remarkable upset, and Joshua was quick to praise his crestfallen adversary after the contest, stating: "I want to give a massive thank you to Kristian Prenga and his team for putting up a good fight. It means a lot to them and me."

He added: "He's a strong guy and I think Eddie Hearn wants to sign him now! He is going to do well. He has a serious future. With experience he will be up there with the rest of us. He is strong, durable and have me a good test - but champions rise."

But all the talk coming into the fight was whether Fury would be ringside. Immediately after his win over Mariusz Wach, he hinted that he would make the trip to Saudi Arabia. But fans were left confused when Fury's security showed up to Jeddah on Saturday night without the 'Gypsy King.'

After the win, Joshua looked around the arena to see if his British rival would show his face, but alas, he ended up being a no show - much to the disappointment of many fans. That did not stop the Watford brawler from sending him a message, though. “Wait a minute - have we got Tyson Fury in the room? Wait, wait, wait, to more important matters - is he here or not? Fair do’s. Imma rip his heart out. I'm the meanest and vicious champion's ever been," he said.

“Listen, all jokes aside, you see, there’s two sides of this thing. One is fire. You have to have that vim, that grrr. But also respect. I respect everything he has done. And everything that he has achieved. As someone who who has been calling for the fight for a long time, we're here now. Shout out to his Excellency. Shout to Eddie Hearn for making these opportunities possible, and I hope the fans will be in for a lovely treat.”