Mancini announces 30 players preliminary list for Asian Cup

Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — Roberto Mancini, the head coach of the Saudi national football team, has announced the squad for the upcoming preparatory camp to be held in Qatar from Dec. 31 to Jan. 11.

This camp is part of the fourth phase of preparation for the 2023 Asian Cup, which will also take place in Qatar in January.

During the camp, the Saudi team will play three friendly matches. The first will be against the Lebanese national team on Jan. 4, the second against the Palestinian national team on Jan. 9, and the third against the Hong Kong national team on Jan. 10.

Mancini has called up 30 players for the camp, and their names are as follows: Nawaf Al-Aqidi, Mohammed Al-Yami, Raghid Najjar, Ahmed Al-Kassar, Hassan Kadesh, Awn Al-Saluli, Ali Al-Bulayhi, Ali Lajami , Hassan Al-Tambakti, Saud Abdulhamid, Fawaz Al-Suqur, Ayman Yahia, Abdullah Al-Khaibari, Ali Hazazi, Mukhtar Ali, Abdulelah Al-Maliki, Faisal Al-Ghamdi, Eid Al-Mawlid, Salem Al-Dawsari, Abbas Al -Hassan, Nasser Al-Dawsari, Mohammed Kanno, Sami Al-Najei, Fahad Al-Muwallad, Khaled Al-Ghannam, Abdulrahman Ghareeb, Mohammed Maran, Firas Al-Brikan, Abdullah Radif, Saleh Al-Shehri.

It’s noteworthy that the national team has already played six friendly matches in the three previous preparation stages, facing teams like Venezuela, Bolivia, Costa Rica, South Korea, Nigeria, and Mali.

Additionally, they played two matches in the first round of the second phase of the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, against the national teams of Pakistan and Jordan.

The national team will depart on Sunday for Qatar, after gathering in Riyadh and leaving from King Khalid International Airport to Doha International Airport.

The Saudi national team is placed in Group Six of the 2023 Asian Cup, alongside the national teams of Oman, Kyrgyzstan, and Thailand.