ANDl 0-3 of ittihad against Al-Raed on the opening day of the 2023/24 Saudi Pro League It has not calmed the flames that have ignited part of the dressing room of the reigning Saudi League champion. The team of Benzemaa candidate to win it all this year, is experiencing a moment of internal crisis due to market instability, reports the newspaper ‘Al-Sharq Al-Awsat’.
As reported by said media, it all started with the attempt to sign Mohammed Al-Owais from Al-Hilal. The goalkeeper, international for Saudi Arabia (he was the starter in Qatar 2022, with a good performance), would not occupy a foreign position and would free up a place for a possible signing. The problem is that this would mean the departure of Grohe (Brazilian), and that clashes with the ideas of Nuno Esprito Santo.
Nuno, in training with Ittihad.
The same sources indicate that the general atmosphere in the club “is dominated by tension” due to the instability of the situation of foreign players. In addition to Grohe, others like Coronado, Ahmed Hegazy (severely injured) and Romarinho are on the wire. despite his good performances in the opening match. His departure is not ruled out and even Romarinho has stepped forward and asked to leave.
Hegazy, for example, an Egyptian central defender who suffered a knee injury, is demanding full payment from the club for the remainder of his contract to leave the club and allow the signing of another central defender from outside the Saudi Pro League. Rumors indicated that the target was Marquinhos, PSG captain.
It should be remembered that the rules of the Saudi Pro League allow only eight non-Saudi players per club.and Ittihad currently has 10. Hegazi and Tarek Hamed are not registered, Romarinho (a star last year) has asked to leave, Grohe can leave… and the same is true of Coronado or Abderrazak Hamdallah. The club led by Benzema will hope to resolve everything in the coming weeks, before the end of the market in September, in order to strengthen the team.
