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Al Hilal grappling with how to replace Al Dawsari
- Al Hilal have announced that captain Salem Al Dawsari will miss the remainder of the Club World Cup
- Blues now face Manchester City in the Round of 16 without their leader and chief creative threat
- New head coach Simone Inzaghi must solve the puzzle of how to replace the Saudi star
Ahead of their Round of 16 clash with Manchester City at the FIFA Club World Cup 2025™, Al Hilal have been dealt a major blow with news that star forward Salem Al Dawsari will miss the remainder of the tournament. The Blues captain suffered a hamstring injury during their final group outing against CF Pachuca and is now expected to be sidelined for at least a month.
Al Dawsari has been a cornerstone of Al Hilal’s success over the past decade and is arguably the squad’s most influential player. That status was underlined as he scored a sublime opener to set up the win over Pachuca. The 2022 AFC Player of the Year is also known for his leadership both on and off the pitch, meaning his absence will have both a technical and psychological impact.
How to solve the puzzle of Al Dawsari's absence is now a challenge that recently appointed head coach Simone Inzaghi must grapple with. FIFA looks at some of the possible ways that the Blues may set up to help cover the loss of their captain.
Mohamed Kanno comes in to central midfield, Nasser Al Dawsari shifts forward
The first option may be the very strategy that Inzaghi employed against Pachuca, with Saudi international Mohamed Kanno coming into central midfield alongside Ruben Neves. That would then see Nasser Al Dawsari push up to cover the left wing spot vacated by Salem Al Dawsari in the base 4-2-3-1/4-1-2-3 formation that Inzaghi has deployed throughout the group stage.
Shift to a back three with new signing Ali Lajami starting
The second option would be to start Ali Lajami – not in Salem Al Dawsari’s role, but rather as a third centre-back alongside Kalidou Koulibaly and Hassan Al Tambakti. The recently signed Saudi Arabia international is vastly experienced on the global stage and his arrival perhaps hints at Inzaghi moving towards a more regular deployment of a three-back set-up. The Italian tactician may favour this option in order to form a stable defensive trio against City’s vaunted attacking threats.
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Kaio Cesar returns to the starting lineup
The third option is to start Kaio Cesar on the right wing, allowing Malcom to shift across to the left where he has played before, featuring as a left winger in six matches during the 2023-24 season. In this scenario, the midfield would consist of Ruben Neves and Nasser Al Dawsari at the base, with the two Brazilian forwards either side of Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, with Marcos Leonardo continuing to lead the line.
This is unlikely, though, given that Kaio Cesar did not play a single minute of the first two matches due to injury, and he also missed the third due to lack of match fitness. Although this approach was not tested after Salem Al Dawsari’s 76th-minute substitution against Pachuca, it remains a viable option, at least in the second half – and especially if Al Hilal are trailing.
