The Saudi national team has received a painful blow just days before resuming its journey in the AFC qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup, with the absence of star player Salman Al-Faraj from the roster. The Saudi club Al-Hilal announced that midfielder Salman Al-Faraj is injured and will be out of action for over three weeks. Consequently, Al-Faraj has been removed from the Saudi national team, which is preparing to face Oman and Japan on January 27 and February 1, respectively.
The Saudi team hopes to achieve victory in the upcoming matches to ensure qualification for the 2022 World Cup finals, which will take place in November. The Saudi team currently tops Group B with 16 points, 4 points ahead of Japan, having achieved 5 wins and 1 draw.
On another note, the Saudi newspaper "Al-Riyadiah" reported that Al-Faraj's injury could lead to his absence from Al-Hilal's first match in the FIFA Club World Cup in the UAE. Al-Hilal is set to kick off its World Cup journey on February 6 against the winner of the match between Al-Jazira from the UAE and Pirae from Tahiti.
