Roberto Mancini names his first Saudi Arabia training squad ahead of friendlies in Newcastle

LONDON: New Saudi Arabia head coach Roberto Mancini has picked his 26-man training squad for the Green Falcons’ preparation camp, which starts on Sunday in Newcastle.

The team will depart for the UK from King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Sunday, and will play two friendly matches during the training window, which runs from Sept. 3-12.

The first match will be against the Costa Rican national team on Sept. 8. The second will be against South Korea national team on Sept. 12. Both games will be played at St. James’ Park, the home stadium of Newcastle United.

The training camp will double up as preparation for the AFC Asian Cup 2023, which begins in January, where the Green Falcons will face Oman, Kyrgyzstan and Thailand in the group stage.

Mancini’s list is as follows: Mohammed Al-Owais, Nawaf Alaqidi, Mohammed Al-Yami, Raghed Al-Najjar, Yasser Al-Shahrani, Abdulelah Al-Amri, Hassan Tambakti, Ahmed Sharahili, Ali Al-Bulaihi, Sultan Al-Ghanam, Ahmed Bamsaud, Saud Abdulhamid, Riyadh Sharahili, Abdullah Al-Khaibari, Ali Hazzazi, Mohammed Kanu, Salem Al-Dawsari, Nasser Al-Dawsari, Sami Al-Najai, Sumayhan Al-Nabit, Abdulaziz Al-Bishi, Abdulrahman Ghareeb, Fahd Al-Rashidi, Fahad Al-Muwallad, Abdullah Al-Hamdan and Feras Albrikan.