Star-studded Al Ahli XI to play Celtic in Como Cup revealed
Celtic were beaten 5-1 by Ajax in their tournament opener on Thursday, as Al Ahli lost 3-1 to Como.
They finished fifth in the Saudi Pro League last season and are the current holders of the AFC Champions League.
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Jaissle has named his team for tonight's match, and it features several big stars, such as England international striker Ivan Toney and ex-Manchester City hero Riyad Mahrez.
Former Juventus defender Merih Demiral starts at the back, too, with Franck Kessie captaining the side in midfield.
Allain Saint-Maximin, previously a key man at Newcastle United, is among the substitutes.
Al Ahli starting XI: Mendy, Rayan, Demiral, Ibanez, Dams, Eid, Kessie, Fahad, Mahrez, Galeno, Toney.
Subs: Al-sanbi, Abdo, Bakor, Al-Hurayji, Sumayhan, Al-Buraikan, Yaseen, Majrashi, Balaboid, Ziyad jr, Ramiz, Khaibari, Ayman, Saint-Maximin.
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Scottish Sun
23 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
Goodwin not starting a single Scot is an indictment of our system & all young players need to take notice says Leckie
Our man reckons it's no wonder Scotland's top talent is moving elsewhere HOME DISCOMFORTS Goodwin not starting a single Scot is an indictment of our system & all young players need to take notice says Leckie Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) THERE are no airs and graces about them. They have hunger and ambition. 4 Jim Goodwin caused a stir Credit: PA 4 United fielded a starting XI without a single Scot Credit: PA 4 Many of Scotland's top young stars, like Billy Gilmour, have headed overseas Credit: Reuters They appreciate the chance they've been given. Jim Goodwin's explanation of why he put his European hopes in the hands of a busload of foreigners should make every young Scottish footballer sit up and take notice. But in the wake of a night when he fielded the first team in Dundee United's competitive history without a homegrown starter, there was another line that should also have cut every chairman, manager and coach in the land to the quick. The one where he admitted his imports 'aren't used to being pampered by academies'. Wow. What an indictment of a system that was supposed to feed our national sport for generations to come, but which is instead providing us with little more than scraps. If that sounds harsh, then check these numbers from games involving our top 12 teams over the past few days. Rangers started two Scots — John Souttar and Findlay Curtis — against Panathinaikos in the Champions League on Tuesday. Celtic went with four against Ajax the following evening in Tony Ralston, Dale Murray, Kieran Tierney and Callum McGregor, but of those, only the last two will be first picks once the real stuff starts. Hibs fielded four in the Europa League on Thursday night, Aberdeen had two against Ipswich on Friday. Hearts had six starting Scots against Sunderland on Saturday, while Killie had seven against East Fife and Livi six against Kelty Hearts. Huge thunderstorms at Ajax vs Celtic St Mirren and Dundee played three each against Ayr and Montrose, and Motherwell used just the two in Friday's friendly against Hertha Berlin. Of our entire top flight, only newly-promoted Falkirk kept the flag properly flying, playing ten Scots against Spartans on Saturday along with Brad Spencer, born in London to a Glaswegian dad. That means of 132 players lining up at kick-off, only 50 qualify for that national team we're meant to be supplying. So we can grumble about the route Goodwin and United have gone down, as we've heard so many do since that Conference League tie last Thursday. Or maybe we can look at the key reasons why it's getting tougher and tougher for homegrown talent to make it on their own doorstep. Reasons which, while hard to hear and harder still to swallow, the Tannadice gaffer appears to have hit squarely on the head with his reasoning behind his signing policy. One which has taken him to the Netherlands, Croatia, Finland, Macedonia, Sweden and Australia rather than Netherlee, Cupar, Falkirk, Montrose, Sauchie and Auchterarder. Because, for me at least, in bigging up the positive traits of a job-lot who fly in the face of everything the legendary Jim McLean put in place during the club's heyday, Goodwin is also giving our academies and the sort of players they produce their character. What he seems to be saying is that our youngsters DO have airs and graces about them, that they DON'T display the same hunger and ambition, that maybe they aren't as appreciative of the chance they've been given. Most damning of all, though? Have YOU got a point for Kris Boyd? Kris Boyd and Roger Hannah chew over the big talking points each week SOMETHING you've just got to get off your chest from the weekend action? A burning Scottish football talking point you can't wait to bring up with Kris Boyd and Roger Hannah? SunSport's GoBallistic show wants to hear from you! So why not help set the Scottish football agenda for the week ahead! Have your say on the game's big topics by emailing us on: GoBallistic@ It's YOUR turn to Go Ballistic! That they've got used to a set-up that pampers them. I wouldn't imagine for a moment he's claiming our academies aren't fit for purpose. I also wouldn't dare suggest that he doesn't believe there are any good Scottish kids coming through. But it seems crystal clear that he doesn't believe they're producing the right kind of talent, physically or mentally, for our domestic game. Ask yourself how many are playing regularly for your team. Then ask yourself why so many, from Billy Gilmour to Lewis Ferguson to Aaron Hickey and more besides, have decided the only way to achieve their potential is go abroad and pretty much learn the game from scratch. Of course, Scottish teams playing without any Scottish players is nothing new. It was March 2000 when Rangers did it for the first time, starting a 0-0 draw against St Johnstone with an Overseas XI. Stefan Klos, Lorenzo Amoruso, Arthur Numan, Andrei Kanchelskis, Gio van Bronckhorst, Rod Wallace, Jorg Albertz, Claudio Reyna, Tony Vidmar, Seb Rozental and Tugay. Difference was, you could see that coming from a mile off. Russell Martin opens up after he got sent off by John Beaton in pre-season friendly vs 'Boro It had seemed a natural next step ever since Graeme Souness arrived and more especially once Dick Advocaat took charge. But to see a once self-sufficient club like United go full-on foreign for such a big game? Well, that should pull us all up a bit sharp. As, for that matter, should the shrinking number of Scots playing on a regular basis the higher we go up the food chain. If it works as well for Jim Goodwin as it has for, say Stephen Robinson at St Mirren, where he's identified a certain mix of power, pace and stature from England, Ireland and now Jamaica that he doesn't believe is available up here, then good luck to both of them, because their only job is to win games. If seeing Scottish players fritter into the minority pretty much right across the Premiership doesn't worry anyone and everyone who's invested in our game, though? Well, don't say you weren't warned when we run out for a World Cup qualifier one day with 11 guys who all qualified through their grannies. Spend or lose Bren THEY have more resources than all the other clubs put together. They have more to sell to their transfer targets than anyone else in the land. So how come, year after year, both halves of the Old Firm are so slow to get their summer recruitment done? 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BBC News
23 minutes ago
- BBC News
Winger Breum linked with Celtic
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Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Chelsea target 'asks to be left out of pre-season match' as Stamford Bridge move gathers pace after 'agreeing personal terms'
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