The technical staff of Al-Hilal Saudi Club received a huge morale and tactical boost with the confirmation that veteran Senegalese defender Kalidou Coulibaly is fit to participate in the team's upcoming match against Al-Ettifaq. This highly anticipated encounter is part of the 22nd round of the Saudi Professional League and will be held at the Kingdom Arena, the new home ground of Al-Hilal, which has witnessed the team's domestic and continental victories.

Al-Hilal's recent group training sessions saw the return of the "Senegalese Rock" to full participation, signaling his complete recovery from his recent injury. Coulibaly had undergone an intensive treatment and rehabilitation program under the supervision of the club's medical staff to ensure his timely return for the crucial matches of the season. This return comes at an ideal time for coach Jorge Jesus, who is looking to solidify the team's foundation and continue their positive run in the league.

Koulibaly suffered a hamstring strain, a muscle injury that requires careful management to prevent further complications, necessitating his forced rest. This injury caused him to miss the team's recent crucial match against Shabab Al-Ahli Dubai, which ended in a draw in the seventh round of the AFC Champions League group stage. Al-Hilal's defense sorely missed Koulibaly's solidity and his extensive experience in positioning and building attacks from the back.

Koulibaly's return is of paramount importance, not only technically but also for the morale of his teammates, given the significant value he brings with his international experience at Napoli and Chelsea. Koulibaly is a cornerstone of Al-Hilal's defense, directly contributing to keeping clean sheets and instilling confidence in the midfield and attack, especially against a team of Al-Ettifaq's caliber, which boasts impressive attacking players.

In the broader context of the competition, Al-Hilal aims to solidify its lead in the Saudi Professional League and widen the gap with its closest rivals when it faces Al-Ettifaq, capitalizing on home advantage at the Kingdom Arena. This match presents an opportunity to appease fans after the recent Asian draw and to reaffirm the team's domestic dominance. The return of a star player of Coulibaly's caliber significantly boosts Al-Hilal's chances of securing the three points and underscores the high level of professionalism demonstrated by the medical and fitness staff in preparing the players for the congested fixture schedule.

In conclusion, Saudi football fans are eagerly awaiting this tough match, as the return of the injured stars adds to the excitement of the Saudi League, which has become the focus of the world’s attention, thanks to attracting the brightest stars of the game and the remarkable development of its infrastructure and technical levels in recent years.

The management of Damac Club, headed by Engineer Khaled bin Mashaat, has settled the issue of the technical leadership of the first football team, by reaching a final agreement with the veteran Brazilian coach Fabio Carille, to take over the technical affairs for the remainder of the current season’s competitions, succeeding the Portuguese coach Armando Evangelista.

According to sources from “Al-Midan Al-Riyadi”, the negotiations between the club officials and the Brazilian coach were quickly successful, due to the administration’s urgent desire to address the team’s precarious situation in the Saudi Professional League standings, where the team is in the danger zone that threatens it with relegation, which necessitated urgent technical intervention by a figure with extensive experience in Saudi stadiums.

Carille's experience in Saudi stadiums

The selection of Fabio Carille is no coincidence, but rather based on his impressive coaching record and extensive experience in the Saudi League, having previously managed Al-Wahda and, most notably, Al-Ittihad. Carille is known for his disciplined tactical approach and his ability to organize the defense, qualities Damac desperately needs at the moment to stop the bleeding of points and restore balance on the pitch.

The fans of “Faris Al Janoub” are counting on Carille’s skill in dealing with crucial and pressured matches, especially since the Brazilian coach has a strong personality and the ability to deal psychologically with the players, which are crucial factors in the battles to survive and avoid relegation, as he has previously succeeded in building solid teams that are difficult to penetrate, and led Al Ittihad to reach the final of the Arab Championship and achieve advanced positions in the league.

Evangelista's dismissal and the challenges of the next phase

Damac FC's management decided to part ways with Portuguese coach Armando Evangelista and informed him of his departure this morning, following a string of poor results that left the team in a precarious position. The management felt that a change was absolutely necessary to revitalize the team before it was too late, especially with the competition intensifying in the final rounds of the season.

The new coach faces an immediate and difficult challenge as the team prepares to face Al-Taawoun in the 22nd round of the Saudi Professional League. The highly anticipated match will be held at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Buraidah, where Damac hopes to return with a positive result that will mark a new beginning and help them avoid relegation.

Brazilian striker Marcos Leonardo, a key player for Al-Hilal's first football team, has dropped a bombshell within the Riyadh-based club by making a shocking decision in the past few hours regarding his immediate future with the team. This comes at a time when the club's management is working to restructure the squad during the current winter transfer window to ensure both technical and administrative stability for the remainder of the season.

According to Brazilian press reports, specifically those from Band Sports, Marcos Leonardo has categorically rejected the idea of ​​transferring to Brazilian club Flamengo, closing the door on one of the most prominent options for his departure. The reports indicate that the player is willing to limit his role with Al-Hilal to training only, without participating in matches, expressing his deep dissatisfaction with what he described as the unsatisfactory treatment he has received recently. This situation presents the club's management with a real dilemma regarding their foreign player roster.

This tension in the relationship between the player and the club comes within a broader context related to Al-Hilal's crowded roster of international stars, making competition for a starting position in coach Jorge Jesus's lineup extremely difficult. Saudi clubs, particularly the big ones like Al-Hilal, face the ongoing challenge of balancing the regulations regarding the number of foreign players allowed with the club's desire to attract new talent or offload players who have fallen out of favor with the coaching staff. This is the scenario Leonardo is currently experiencing, given the presence of several high-profile attacking players in the squad.

Al-Hilal's management is racing against time to market the player's contract during the current winter transfer window, as keeping a player of Leonardo's market value without playing time represents a financial and technical burden. The management aims to find an alternative offer that satisfies the player's ambitions while safeguarding the club's financial interests, especially since Al-Hilal always strives to maintain dressing room stability and shield the team from any distractions that could negatively impact its performance in domestic and continental competitions.

On the field, the coaching staff, led by Jesus, is trying to shield the team from these administrative crises, as Al-Hilal continues its intensive preparations to face Al-Ettifaq in the 22nd round of the Saudi Professional League. This match is particularly important as it will be held at the Kingdom Arena, the new home ground of the club, where the team aims to continue its winning streak and strengthen its lead in the league, overcoming any obstacles that might arise from the transfer market.