Yahoo Movies Saudi Arabia World Cup 2022 squad list, fixtures and latest odds
They are regarded as one of Asia’s best national football teams, but Saudi Arabia face a tough task to progress beyond the World Cup 2022 group stage.
The team is managed by Herve Renard, a Frenchman who has previously coached Morocco, Lille, and Ivory Coast and took up the post in 2019.
Saudi Arabia failed to reach the World Cup in 2010 and 2014, but Qatar marks their second consecutive qualification.
Expectations are being managed well by the team, however. Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman met with players and staff in late October and had some reassuring words for the Green Falcons, assuring them that, due to the difficulty of the group, "no one expects us to secure a win or a draw.
"Just be comfortable, play your game, and enjoy the tournament."
Saudi Arabia World Cup 2022 squad
Each country’s final World Cup squad of 23-26 players must be submitted to Fifa by November 13. The replacement of injured or Covid-19 positive players is allowed up to 24 hours before a team’s first match. This year the World Cup will run from November 20 to December 18.
Who are likely to be the star names in the squad?
Salem Al-Dawsari, who plays on the left wing, made a brief appearance at Villarreal in La Liga in 2018, while on loan from his domestic Saudi club.
He has 65 caps and was a key asset in the squad in Russia, striking a late winner against Egypt in their final group stage game.
Another standout from the 2018 squad was captain Salman Al-Faraj, who scored the equaliser from the penalty spot in that Egypt win.
What are Saudi Arabia’s fixtures?
Saudi Arabia are in Group C alongside Argentina, Mexico and Poland.
Nov 22: Argentina vs Saudi Arabia, Lusail Iconic Stadium, 10am GMT (1pm local time)
Nov 26: Poland vs Saudi Arabia, Education City Stadium, 1pm (4pm local time)
Nov 30: Saudi Arabia vs Mexico, Lusail Iconic Stadium, 7pm (10pm local time)
See the full list of World Cup 2022 fixtures.
What is Saudi Arabia’s World Cup record?
They crashed out of the group stage at Russia 2018 with just one win and two losses.
For much of the current Saudi Arabia squad, that was their first and only taste of World Cup campaigns given they failed to qualify in both 2010 and 2014.
That said, Saudi Arabia became the second Arab national team in history to reach the Round of 16 in a World Cup in 1994, their debut in the tournament, one of the few Asian teams to do this.
Saudi Arabia won the Asian Cup three times in the 1980s and 1990s.
Latest odds
Saudi Arabia are currently 500/1 to win the 2022 World Cup.
The leading contenders...
Brazil 4/1
France 6/1
Argentina 13/2
England 7/1
Spain 8/1
Germany 10/1
Information correct as of November 1
