Nawaf Al-Aqaidi, player of the First Victory soccer team, is ahead of Saudi Arabia’s first team list that will face China in the opening of the final qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, while Salman Al-Faraj, former Crescent captain, will miss out.
Lakhdar opens its games against Indonesia on September 5, with China facing Dalian on the 10th of the same month, in the second of the World Cup qualifiers.
The Professional and Player Status Committee of the Saudi Football Federation condemned the 24-year-old goalkeeper accused by the Italian coach Roberto Mancini with his team-mate Sultan al-Ghannam and Salman al-Faraj, before the start of the last Asian Cup, of evading international recall, announcing disciplinary sanctions against each of them. The Italian Mancini decided to call the Sultan of El Ghanam a player of victory for the Green List during the past days, which saw the Falcons face Pakistan and Jordan. The defender participated in front of the former and succeeded in making two goals during the match won by the Saudi national team “3.0”.
According to press reports, the initial list contained a minimum of 35 players, including the Sultan of Sheep, which can be amended by deleting, or adding up to one day before the game, meaning that the nodule can play, and has no disciplinary punishment.
An official source in Al-Nasr’s management confirmed that Al-Aqaidi was no longer suspended and could play matches with the yellow team, and by asking him not to leave with the yellow mission to Portugal’s preparatory camp replied: “A problem with the passport and he will join us as soon as it is resolved.”
The greater penalty, handed down by the then professional, came from Nawaf al-Aqaidi, the goalkeeper, who was subjected to a five-month suspension, in addition to being fined 300 thousand riyals, while “professionalism” only fined the Sultan of Ghanam, right-back, Salman al-Faraj, midfielder, 200 thousand for the first, and half for the second. Green is found in Group III along with Japan, Australia, Bahrain, China and Indonesia.
