‘We’re here to disrupt and won’t fear anyone’: Al-Qadsiah boss Brendan Rodgers on first full season in Saudi Pro League

ALKHOBAR: Returning to Alkhobar for his first full season in the Saudi Pro League, Al-Qadsiah manager Brendan Rodgers believes his side will compete for Saudi Arabian football’s most prestigious honours this campaign.

The former Liverpool and Celtic manager, who moved to the Kingdom last December, has set his sights on establishing the east coast club among the lead challengers for the SPL title, with eyes on competing on all fronts in domestic and international competition.

Al-Qadsiah, who contest the AFC Champions League Elite for the first time, have made significant moves during the summer, with international arrivals in Netherlands midfielder Tijjani Reijnders from Manchester City, and Moroccan left-back Souffian El-Karouani from FC Utrecht, alongside signing Saudi stars in Ahmed Al-Siyahi and Sultan Haroun from Al-Riyadh, and Mohammed Al-Qahtani from Al-Hilal, to bolster their ranks.

With expectations high following a major summer that included an outstanding FIFA World Cup performance from 2025-26 RSL golden boot winner Julian Quinones with Mexico, Rodgers believes the preseason and start to the campaign is only the beginning for his side.

Rodgers told the Saudi Pro League: “Since arriving in December, we’ve been able to create a real good base to go forward into this season. The players’ behavior and all the processes that we put in place have been outstanding — we’ve been so impressed with the mentality, the professionalism, the willingness to improve.

“We’ve wanted to bring our way of playing to the group, and over the course of the second part of (last) season, they were exceptional in that. So, over the course of preseason, we’ve been able to build on those ideas. We had a great training camp in Spain