The Greek Donis, the coach of the Saudi national football team, announced a list of 30 players to participate in the preparatory camp that will be held in the Qatari capital, Doha, during the period from 9 to 17 November, as part of the “Green” preparation program during the FIFA days to compete in the 2027 Asian Cup finals and the qualifiers for the 2030 World Cup.
During the camp, the Saudi national team will play two friendly matches, the first against South Korea on November 13, and the second against Uzbekistan on the 17th of the same month, as part of the technical staff’s efforts to determine the players’ readiness and test the technical options available before the upcoming matches.
The goalkeeper list included Muhammad Al Owais, Hamed Youssef, and Abdul Quddus Attia.
In the rest of the positions, Donis summoned Muhammad Abu Al-Shamat, Saud Abdul-Hamid, Muhammad Mahzari, Nawaf Bushel, Ali Lagami, Hassan Al-Tambukti, Abdullah Al-Khatib, Sultan Tankar, Abdul-Ilah Al-Omari, Abdul-Malik Al-Ayiri, Nasser Al-Dosari, Abdullah Al-Khaibari, Ziad Al-Juhani, Muhammad Kanno, Mukhtar Ali, Musab Al-Jawir, Fares Abdi, and Miteb. The warlike.
The list also included Abdullah Al Salem, Firas Al-Braikan, Abdullah Al-Hamdan, Turki Al-Ammar, Ahmed Al-Ghamdi, Muhammad Al-Kuwaikbi, Marwan Al-Sahafi, Muhammad Al-Qahtani, and Sultan Mandash.
The list witnessed the absence of team captain Salem Al-Dosari, while the technical staff is looking forward to benefiting from the two friendly matches against South Korea and Uzbekistan as part of “Al-Akhdar’s” preparations for the upcoming continental and international competitions, while the quintet of Hammam Al-Hammami, Alaa Al-Hajji, Nawaf Al-Aqidi, Hassan Kadish and Zakaria Hawsawi are still undergoing a rehabilitation program, after the injury they suffered during the Gulf Cup that “Al-Akhdar” won in Jeddah early last month.
The management of Al-Ahly Club, competing in the Saudi Women's Football League, decided to make a new change in the team's technical staff, by assigning Serbian coach Dragan Vukovic to lead the first team, succeeding Icelandic Thor Arnason, in a move aimed at correcting the team's path after the faltering start in the Saudi Women's Premier League.
The decision came after six rounds, during which Al-Ahly succeeded in achieving only one win and a draw, compared to four losses, placing it in penultimate place with four points, while conceding 24 goals, according to the competition’s ranking table and the team’s results.
Vukovic's choice comes from within the club, as he was coaching the youth groups, to get the opportunity to lead the first team in a stage that requires improving results and restoring technical balance, especially after the two heavy losses to Al-Hilal, 0-9, and Al-Qadisiyah, 0-10.
Arnason took over coaching Al-Ahly last August, succeeding Jordanian coach Manar Al-Freij, who led the team during previous seasons and achieved a number of achievements with him, including winning the Saudi Women’s Federation Cup.
The Serbian coach begins his mission with a difficult test against Al-Ittihad in the Jeddah derby, in the seventh round of competitions, in a confrontation that represents a first opportunity to measure the extent of the new technical staff’s ability to make a change in the team’s performance and results.
Attention within Al-Ahly club is turning to the upcoming suspension period, which is expected to witness the resolution of one of the most prominent files on the club’s management table, related to the future of Dutch coach Marino Pusic, in light of the decline in results and technical levels during the recent confrontations, and mounting questions about his ability to lead the team towards achieving the aspirations of its fans.
Informed sources revealed to Asharq Al-Awsat that the current Al-Ahly management does not show complete conviction in what the technical staff is offering, led by Pusic, and that the option of change is on the table within the ongoing evaluations. However, the financial obligations resulting from terminating the contractual relationship with the coach, in addition to the costs of contracting with a new technical staff, represent an obstacle to making the dismissal decision at the present time.
According to the same sources, the administration would have dealt with the technical staff file differently if the necessary financial liquidity had been available to terminate the coach’s contract and sign an alternative whose capabilities and technical vision were compatible with the club’s ambitions to compete for championships.
These developments come after Al-Ahly lost to Al-Shabab with a heavy result, and tied with Al-Sadd of Qatar in the AFC Elite Champions League, after a series of five consecutive victories that restored optimism to Al-Ahly circles, before the recent results raised questions about the team’s technical stability.
The Al-Ahly administration faces a delicate equation between the desire to correct the technical path and maintain financial stability, at a time when the fans are looking forward to seeing a team capable of competing and providing levels commensurate with the size of contracts and ambitions.
Pusic's future remains open to two possibilities: dismissal or continuing until the end of the season, provided that the picture becomes clearer during the suspension period, which may constitute a turning point in the team's journey during the current season.
