Georgios Donis has wasted no time putting his stamp on Saudi Arabia. For the Gulf Cup in Jeddah, the Greek coach has taken a scalpel to the World Cup squad and left some of the country’s biggest names on the outside looking in.
The headline omission is as stark as it gets: captain Salem Al-Dawsari is out. So is Roma defender Saud Abdulhamid. Both were central figures for the Green Falcons at the recent World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Both now find themselves cut from the group for “Gulf 27”.
They are not alone. Ahmed Al-Kassar, Ali Majrashi, Ali Lajami, Ayman Yahya, Saleh Al-Shehri and Khalid Al-Ghannam have also been dropped. Eight World Cup players gone in one stroke. A clear break with what came before.
In their place comes a fresh wave.
Donis has turned to eight new faces to reshape his 26-man squad: Hamed Al-Shanqiti, Mohammed Mahzari, Zakaria Hawsawi, Mohammed Al-Qahtani, Saleh Abu Al-Shamat, Abdullah Al-Salem, Rayan Hamed and Hammam Al-Hammami all receive call-ups as the coach redraws the hierarchy ahead of a home tournament.
Full Squad
The full list, confirmed by the Saudi national team’s account on X, underlines the scale of the shake-up. The goalkeeping department features Mohammed Al-Owais, Nawaf Al-Aqidi and Hamed Al-Shanqiti. In defence, Donis has selected Abdulelah Al-Amri, Jihad Zikri, Rayan Hamed, Hassan Kadesh, Hassan Tambakti, Nawaf Boushal, Mohammed Mahzari, Mutaib Al-Harbi and Zakaria Hawsawi.
Midfield carries a blend of familiar names and new blood: Musab Al-Juwayr, Mohammed Al-Qahtani, Mohammed Kanno, Ziyad Al-Johani, Abdullah Al-Khaibari, Nasser Al-Dawsari, Alaa Haji, Sultan Mandash, Mohammed Abu Al-Shamat, Hammam Al-Hammami and Saleh Abu Al-Shamat.
Up front, the responsibility falls on Abdullah Al-Hamdan, Firas Al-Buraikan and Abdullah Al-Salem.
Gulf 27 Tournament
Gulf 27 will be staged in Jeddah from 23 September to 6 October, and the fixture list offers no easing-in period for this remodelled Saudi side. They open against Kuwait on 23 September at Al-Inma Stadium in King Abdullah Sports City. Oman await on 26 September. Iraq complete a demanding Group One schedule on the 29th.
The draw has handed Saudi Arabia a group that offers both danger and opportunity: Kuwait, Oman and Iraq on one side; Qatar, the UAE, Bahrain and Yemen grouped together on the other.
For Donis, this is more than a regional tournament. With home crowds, a reconfigured squad and big names left at home, Gulf 27 becomes an early verdict on his readiness to lead a new Saudi cycle.
