The real work for Roberto Mancini starts now.
On the second day of 2024, the Italian coach named his 26-man Saudi Arabia squad for the AFC Asian Cup, with the Green Falcons kicking off their Group F campaign on Jan. 16 against Oman before taking on Kyrgyzstan (Jan. 21) and Thailand (Jan. 25)
Since leaving his post as head coach of Italy and taking over the Green Falcons in August, the former Manchester City and Inter Milan boss has overseen four friendlies and two World Cup qualifiers.
The former brought poor results, though against tough opposition in Costa Rica, South Korea, Nigeria and Mali. The latter brought much-needed wins against Pakistan (4-0) and a solid 2-0 victory in Jordan.
After those matches, with training camps and Saudi Pro League games watched and analyzed, Mancini should, at least, now be familiar with the level of talent available to him.
His past squads have been forward-looking with an emphasis on young players, having even called up 16-year-old budding star Talal Haji. His Asian Cup squad is a little more familiar as older faces are recalled, but there are some young and new names going to Qatar as well.
There are some persistent questions facing Mancini, that many of his predecessors would recognize.
Most clubs in the Saudi Arabian top tier feature foreign goalkeepers. At the 2022 World Cup, Mohammed Al-Owais was between the sticks without being first choice for his club. Now, the three shot-stoppers named in the final squad have just a handful of caps between them, though at least Nawaf Al-Aqidi is getting regular playing time for Al-Nassr.
The received wisdom in football is that players who are not in action for their clubs are risky bets for their countries, especially when it comes to goalkeepers. But Mancini does not have much choice; the person between the sticks for Saudi Arabia at the Asian Cup is inexperienced internationally but perhaps not for much longer.
There is a similar situation at the opposite end of the pitch, unsurprisingly so given that some of the best attackers in the world can be found in the SPL. The quality and the quantity of the imports like Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema mean that opportunities can be limited for local stars.
Here, though, there is an interesting question for the boss. By far the most prolific domestic forward is Firas Al-Buraikan, who scored 17 goals last season for Al-Fateh, earning himself a big move to Al-Ahli where he has continued his hot streak.
He was not involved in the two World Cup qualifiers but his goalscoring exploits have been hard to ignore.
He may not start though. Mancini, who has also selected young forward Abdullah Radif ahead of Abdullah Al-Hamdan, turned to Saleh Al-Shehri in the two World Cup qualifiers and was rewarded with four goals.
Will the coach go with the red-hot goal getter or the one who delivered for him in November but has barely played since? Perhaps it could even be both? That could depend on what he decides to do in other areas.
It remains to be seen if Mancini goes with three center-backs again. Ali Al-Bulaihi offers plenty of experience with the 34-year-old Al-Hilal central defender named alongside Hassan Al-Tambakti. Awn Al-Saluli made his debut in November and the Al-Taawoun man has been called once more.
Saud Abdulhamid has been a standout since before the 2022 World Cup and is surely going to play on the right as either a full-back or a wing-back.
In midfield, there is plenty of talent for Mancini to choose from. There may be a little too much reliance in a creative sense on Salem Al-Dawsari but this is not a major problem when the Asian Player of the Year is fit and in such good form. He was Saudi Arabia’s star of the World Cup and more than holds his own alongside the famous foreigners in the league. If Saudi Arabia go all the way, they are going to need him.
It looks as if Salman Al-Faraj’s international career is going to be over and that calming presence in the middle is up for grabs. Fellow Al-Hilal star Mohamed Kanno offers dynamism and energy and holding midfielder Abdulellah Al-Malki, who missed the World Cup through injury, may get his chance to play in Qatar after all. Mancini has also named three youngsters in Faisal Al-Ghamdi, Abbas Al-Hassan and Eid Al-Muwallad.
All will get a chance in the three warmup games, starting against Lebanon on Thursday and then there are friendlies with Palestine and Hong Kong. The hard work is about to start.
