Doha, Qatar: Saudi Arabia head coach Roberto Mancini has named his 26-player squad for the AFC Asian Cup Qatar , with the tournament set to kick off on January 12.
The Green Falcons have been training with a preliminary squad at camp in Sealine with Mancini omitting goalkeeper Mohamed Al Yami, midfielder Ali Hazazi and strikers Khaled Al Ghanem and Mohamed Maran. Saudi Arabia, who won the last of their three AFC Asian Cup titles in 1996, have Oman, Kyrgyztan and Thailand for company in Group F.
Salem Al Dawsari – the Asian Player of the Year – is the biggest star in line up. He was Saudi’s star of the World Cup and if the Green Falcons want go all the way, they need the midfielder to fire.
Saudi Arabia are scheduled to play three friendlies, starting with Lebanon today, followed by Palestine on Tuesday with a final warm-up against Hong Kong on January 10.
Saudi Arabia squad
Goalkeepers: Nawaf Al Aqidi, Raghed Najjar, and Ahmed Al Kassar.
Defenders: Hassan Kadish, Aoun Al Saluli, Ali Al Bulaihi, Ali Lagami, Hassan Al Tambakti, Saud Abdul Hamid, Fawaz Al Saqour, and Abdullah Al Khaybari.
Midfielders: AbdulIlah Al Maliki, Mukhtar Ali, Faisal Al Ghamdi, Eid Al Mawlid, Salem Al Dawsari, Abbas Al Hassan, Nasser Al Dosari, Mohamed Kanno, and Sami Al Naji.
Forwards: Fahd Al Mawlid, Ayman Yahya, Abdul Rahman Gharib, Firas Al Buraikan, Abdullah Radif, Saleh Al Shehri.
