Saudi Arabia's head coach Roberto Mancini announced on Tuesday a squad of 26 players to participate in the 2023 Asian Cup football finals, held from January 12th to February 10th in Qatar.
The Italian coach excluded four players from the final Saudi team roster: goalkeeper Mohammed Al-Yami (Al-Ahli), midfielder Ali Hazazi (Al-Ettifaq), winger Khaled Al-Ghannam, and striker Mohammed Maran (Al-Nassr).
Mancini had previously removed from his provisional list the right-back Sultan Al-Ghannam (30 international caps) from Al-Nassr, as well as the left-back Yasser Al-Shahrani (77 international caps) from Al-Hilal, along with his experienced midfield teammate Salman Al-Faraj.
The "Green Falcons" are placed in Group D along with Oman, Kyrgyzstan, and Thailand, aiming for their fourth title in history.
The Saudi national team last clinched the title in 1996. They were eliminated from the group stages in 2011 and 2015 before managing only to reach the round of 16 in the previous edition in 2019 in the UAE.
In their final preparatory camp, the team will play three friendly matches against Lebanon, Palestine, and Hong Kong on the 4th, 9th, and 10th of this month, respectively.
Officially: Saudi Arabia's squad for the #Asian_Cup
Saudi National Team Roster:
- Goalkeepers: Nawaf Al-Aqidi and Raghad Najjar (Al-Nassr), Ahmed Al-Kassar (Al-Faiha).
🇸🇦 Top goalkeeper Nawaf Al-Aqidi prepares for Asia!
- Defense: Hasan Kadesh (Al-Ittihad), Ali Al-Bulaihi, Hassan Tambakti, Saud Abdulhamid (Al-Hilal), Aun Al-Saluli (Al-Taawoun), Ali Lajami (Al-Nassr), Fawaz Al-Sagour (Al-Shabab).
Congratulations and wishing even more success in the future!
- Midfield: Salem Al-Dawsari, Nasser Al-Dawsari, Mohammed Kanno, Abdul-Ilah Al-Malki (Al-Hilal), Abdulrahman Ghareeb, Abdullah Al-Khaibari, Sami Al-Najei, Ayman Yahya (Al-Nassr), Abbas Al-Hassan, Mukhtar Ali (Al-Fateh), Eid Al-Mowaled (Al-Akdoud), Faisal Al-Ghamdi (Al-Ittihad).
'Salem Al-Dawsari' before the morning training session.
- Forwards: Fahad Al-Muwallad, Abdullah Al-Hamdan (Al-Shabab), Firas Al-Buraikan (Al-Ahli), Saleh Al-Shehri (Al-Hilal).
By revealing the finalized lineup, Saudi Arabia is setting the stage for a strong presence in the upcoming Asian Cup, aiming to reclaim their former glory on the football field. With a mix of seasoned players and fresh talent, the "Green Falcons" look prepared to take on the challenge of the tournament with determination and skill.
