Marked for Talal Al-Enezi
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match21 Dec 2030
The wait goes on for Al-Njoom
21 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Match21 Dec 2030
No clean sheets in sight for Al-Njoom
17 games now with at least two against. The back line has been rearranged, the goalkeeper has been backed publicly, and the goals keep going in anyway.
The terraces23 Dec 2030
Supporters organise against the Al-Njoom board
A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.
Squad23 Dec 2030
11 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
Squad23 Dec 2030
33 days out for Montassar Toumi after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Al-Njoom will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Match21 Dec 2030
0‑7 to Al-Faisaly, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.
Market23 Dec 2030
Saeid Karimi hands in a written request
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Al-Njoom can pretend not to have heard.
Match21 Dec 2030
7 matches without a goal for Al-Njoom
The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 7 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.
Match21 Dec 2030
Defending was optional and nobody took up the option. 7 goals between Al-Njoom and Al-Faisaly, and not one of the people who paid to be there will ask for the money back.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match14 Dec 2030
20 matches without a win for Al-Njoom
The run now stands at 20, and the questions being asked around Al-Njoom are no longer polite ones.
Match14 Dec 2030
No clean sheets in sight for Al-Njoom
16 games now with at least two against. The back line has been rearranged, the goalkeeper has been backed publicly, and the goals keep going in anyway.
Squad16 Dec 2030
40 days out for Montassar Toumi after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Al-Njoom will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Match14 Dec 2030
Chastening afternoon for Al-Njoom
A 0‑6 beating by Al-Batin was the sort of result that empties a stadium long before the final whistle.
Squad16 Dec 2030
A knee injury of the worst kind for Faisal Al-Qahtani
17 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Al-Njoom lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Squad16 Dec 2030
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Market16 Dec 2030
Only the photograph left for Ukeme Williams
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Ukeme Williams will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Al-Njoom the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Match14 Dec 2030
The goals have deserted Al-Njoom
6 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Al-Njoom can tell you which week it ends in.
Market16 Dec 2030
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match7 Dec 2030
No end in sight to Al-Njoom's wait for a win
19 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Al-Njoom has to find a result from somewhere.
Match7 Dec 2030
No clean sheets in sight for Al-Njoom
15 games now with at least two against. The back line has been rearranged, the goalkeeper has been backed publicly, and the goals keep going in anyway.
Squad9 Dec 2030
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 47 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Squad9 Dec 2030
24 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Al-Njoom lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Match7 Dec 2030
0‑6 to Damac, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.
Market9 Dec 2030
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Al-Njoom can pretend not to have heard.
Match7 Dec 2030
The goals have deserted Al-Njoom
5 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Al-Njoom can tell you which week it ends in.
Match7 Dec 2030
Nobody could stop scoring
6 goals. Both benches spent the second half looking at each other rather than at the pitch. Purists will complain about Al-Njoom and Damac in equal measure; everybody else had a wonderful time.
Squad9 Dec 2030
Beaten 6 times: a bad day for Talal Al-Enezi
5 saves does not settle the argument about whose fault it was, and the argument will run all week. Goalkeepers carry these scorelines whoever caused them.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match30 Nov 2030
No end in sight to Al-Njoom's wait for a win
18 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Al-Njoom has to find a result from somewhere.
Match30 Nov 2030
Al-Njoom are shipping goals every week
Two or more conceded in each of the last 14 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.
Squad2 Dec 2030
A fracture rules Montassar Toumi out for 54 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Al-Njoom will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Squad2 Dec 2030
A knee injury of the worst kind for Faisal Al-Qahtani
31 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Al-Njoom lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Match2 Dec 2030
Every point is an argument now for Al-Njoom
Position 16 and 1 points, and the table gets read bottom-up in this part of town. The calendar has stopped being a schedule and started being a countdown.
Match30 Nov 2030
0‑5 to Al-Riyadh, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.
Boardroom2 Dec 2030
Interim Coach has until the next board meeting
What was said behind closed doors has now been said in front of a microphone. Everybody at Al-Njoom can do the arithmetic, including the man it is aimed at.
Boardroom2 Dec 2030
The scrutiny sharpens at Al-Njoom
Nobody upstairs has said anything, which is the loudest thing they could do. Results buy silence in this game; the account at Al-Njoom is running low.
Market2 Dec 2030
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Musawenkosi Madonsela will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Al-Njoom the goodbyes have quietly begun.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match23 Nov 2030
The wait goes on for Al-Njoom
17 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
The terraces25 Nov 2030
Anger at Al-Njoom spills outside the ground
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
Match23 Nov 2030
Al-Njoom are shipping goals every week
Two or more conceded in each of the last 13 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.
Squad25 Nov 2030
A fracture rules Montassar Toumi out for 61 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Al-Njoom will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Squad25 Nov 2030
38 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Al-Njoom lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Squad25 Nov 2030
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Match23 Nov 2030
Nowhere to hide for Al-Njoom
0‑3 against Al-Diriyah, and no complaints that would survive the replay. The manager spoke about character afterwards; the terraces used shorter words.
Market25 Nov 2030
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Al-Njoom, and it is not being withdrawn.
Match23 Nov 2030
The goals have deserted Al-Njoom
3 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Al-Njoom can tell you which week it ends in.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match16 Nov 2030
No end in sight to Al-Njoom's wait for a win
16 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Al-Njoom has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad18 Nov 2030
A fracture rules Montassar Toumi out for 68 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Al-Njoom will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Match16 Nov 2030
No clean sheets in sight for Al-Njoom
12 games now with at least two against. The back line has been rearranged, the goalkeeper has been backed publicly, and the goals keep going in anyway.
Squad18 Nov 2030
45 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Al-Njoom lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Match16 Nov 2030
0‑4 to Hajer, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.
Squad18 Nov 2030
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 8 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
Market18 Nov 2030
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Al-Njoom is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Match18 Nov 2030
Halfway: Al-Njoom sit in position 16
1 points at the turn. The first half of a season is a promise; the second is a bill, and the town is about to find out which of the two this one was.
The dugout18 Nov 2030
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Saeid Karimi, and the manager let it.
In brief
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Boardroom
Nobody left the Al-Njoom dressing room in a hurry
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The dugout
The view from the dugout
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Boardroom
Al-Njoom counting the cost
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match9 Nov 2030
15 matches without a win for Al-Njoom
The run now stands at 15, and the questions being asked around Al-Njoom are no longer polite ones.
Match9 Nov 2030
Chastening afternoon for Al-Njoom
A 0‑12 beating by Ohod was the sort of result that empties a stadium long before the final whistle.
Squad11 Nov 2030
Faisal Al-Qahtani damages knee ligaments — 52 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 52 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Match9 Nov 2030
Al-Njoom are shipping goals every week
Two or more conceded in each of the last 11 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.
Squad11 Nov 2030
There were 9 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Market11 Nov 2030
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Al-Njoom, and it is not being withdrawn.
Match9 Nov 2030
12 goals as Al-Njoom and Ohod go for it
Defending was optional and nobody took up the option. 12 goals between Al-Njoom and Ohod, and not one of the people who paid to be there will ask for the money back.
Boardroom11 Nov 2030
The manager kept them in and said what needed saying. A response is expected on Saturday, and if it does not come the questions move upstairs.
The dugout11 Nov 2030
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑12 Interim Coach left the room before anybody could ask which.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match2 Nov 2030
No end in sight to Al-Njoom's wait for a win
14 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Al-Njoom has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad4 Nov 2030
A knee injury of the worst kind for Faisal Al-Qahtani
59 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Al-Njoom lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Match4 Nov 2030
Every point is an argument now for Al-Njoom
Position 16 and 1 points, and the table gets read bottom-up in this part of town. The calendar has stopped being a schedule and started being a countdown.
Match2 Nov 2030
Al-Njoom leaking at the back
10 matches, two or more conceded in every one of them. Sides that create as much as this can live with it for a while. Nobody lives with it forever.
Market4 Nov 2030
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Al-Njoom can pretend not to have heard.
Squad4 Nov 2030
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 8 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
The dugout4 Nov 2030
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Al-Njoom may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Market4 Nov 2030
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Al-Njoom they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Match2 Nov 2030
Beaten 1‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
In brief
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The dugout
The view from the dugout
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Squad
A Al-Njoom teenager takes the young player award
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The dugout
The form table has caught Saeed Al-Khaibari
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match19 Oct 2030
12 matches without a win for Al-Njoom
The run now stands at 12, and the questions being asked around Al-Njoom are no longer polite ones.
Squad21 Oct 2030
Faisal Al-Qahtani damages knee ligaments — 73 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 73 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Match19 Oct 2030
Beaten 0‑4 by Al-Saudi Al-Watani, and beaten everywhere it matters. The inquest starts on the training pitch on Monday morning.
Market21 Oct 2030
Ukeme Williams has one foot out of the door
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Al-Njoom they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Match19 Oct 2030
No clean sheets in sight for Al-Njoom
8 games now with at least two against. The back line has been rearranged, the goalkeeper has been backed publicly, and the goals keep going in anyway.
Boardroom21 Oct 2030
Al-Njoom counting the cost
The accounts make uncomfortable reading. Wages first and ambition second is the order of business at Al-Njoom now.
The dugout21 Oct 2030
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Yasser Al-Mansour, and the manager let it.
Boardroom21 Oct 2030
The music was off and the showers ran late. What was said in that dressing room stays there, but Saturday will publish the minutes.
The dugout21 Oct 2030
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Interim Coach after 0‑4, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad7 Oct 2030
There were 11 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Squad7 Oct 2030
Faisal Al-Qahtani damages knee ligaments — 87 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 87 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Match5 Oct 2030
10 matches without a win for Al-Njoom
The run now stands at 10, and the questions being asked around Al-Njoom are no longer polite ones.
Match5 Oct 2030
Nowhere to hide for Al-Njoom
1‑6 against Al-Jeel, and no complaints that would survive the replay. The manager spoke about character afterwards; the terraces used shorter words.
Match7 Oct 2030
Al-Njoom sink to position 16
1 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.
Market7 Oct 2030
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Al-Njoom they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Match5 Oct 2030
Al-Njoom are shipping goals every week
Two or more conceded in each of the last 6 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.
Match5 Oct 2030
Nobody could stop scoring
7 goals. Both benches spent the second half looking at each other rather than at the pitch. Purists will complain about Al-Njoom and Al-Jeel in equal measure; everybody else had a wonderful time.
The dugout7 Oct 2030
The manager makes an example of Ukeme Williams
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad30 Sep 2030
14 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
The terraces30 Sep 2030
The mood at Al-Njoom has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
Squad30 Sep 2030
94 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Al-Njoom lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Match28 Sep 2030
The wait goes on for Al-Njoom
9 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Match28 Sep 2030
Chastening afternoon for Al-Njoom
A 0‑3 beating by Al-Shoulla was the sort of result that empties a stadium long before the final whistle.
The dugout30 Sep 2030
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Match28 Sep 2030
No clean sheets in sight for Al-Njoom
5 games now with at least two against. The back line has been rearranged, the goalkeeper has been backed publicly, and the goals keep going in anyway.
The dugout30 Sep 2030
Saeid Karimi gets it from the manager
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Boardroom30 Sep 2030
Nobody left the Al-Njoom dressing room in a hurry
The door stayed shut a long time after the final whistle. What was said in there is between them; whether it worked is between them and Saturday.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad16 Sep 2030
23 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Al-Njoom lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Match11 Sep 2030
Al-Ahli ended it 1‑3. The season narrows to the league now, and everyone in the ground knew it before the final whistle.
Match14 Sep 2030
7 matches without a win for Al-Njoom
The run now stands at 7, and the questions being asked around Al-Njoom are no longer polite ones.
Squad16 Sep 2030
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Player ratings16 Sep 2030
Sami Al-Sulami, 18, plays like he has been here for years — 7.75
A mark of 7.75 means one thing beside a twenty-nine-year-old's name and something else entirely beside a 18-year-old's. Nobody at the ground needed telling which this was.
Match14 Sep 2030
Ali Al-Mansour scored, and precious little else went right: 1‑3 to Al-Hazem, and a quiet walk to the dressing room.
Transfer targets16 Sep 2030
Al-Njoom asked and Al-Batin said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
The dugout16 Sep 2030
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Squad16 Sep 2030
“The easiest signature of my career.” Faisal Al-Shehri and Al-Njoom agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad9 Sep 2030
A knee injury of the worst kind for Montassar Toumi
30 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Al-Njoom lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Squad9 Sep 2030
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 12 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
Match7 Sep 2030
Nowhere to hide for Al-Njoom
0‑3 against Al-Faisaly, and no complaints that would survive the replay. The manager spoke about character afterwards; the terraces used shorter words.
Market9 Sep 2030
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Musawenkosi Madonsela will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Al-Njoom the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Market9 Sep 2030
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Al-Njoom can pretend not to have heard.
Match7 Sep 2030
The wait goes on for Al-Njoom
5 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Squad9 Sep 2030
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Montassar Toumi commits to Al-Njoom for another 2 years.
Transfer targets9 Sep 2030
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Al-Qadisiyah have kept their man, and Al-Njoom go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Boardroom9 Sep 2030
Nobody left the Al-Njoom dressing room in a hurry
The door stayed shut a long time after the final whistle. What was said in there is between them; whether it worked is between them and Saturday.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad2 Sep 2030
37 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Al-Njoom lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
The terraces2 Sep 2030
Anger at Al-Njoom spills outside the ground
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
Boardroom2 Sep 2030
The caretaker keeps it: Interim Coach confirmed
A month of looking elsewhere ended where it started. He already knows every name in the building; the rest of it he now has to prove in public.
Squad2 Sep 2030
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Boardroom2 Sep 2030
Deadline passes with 12 signed and 10 gone
That is the business done at Al-Njoom until the window opens again. Whether it was enough will be answered on Saturdays rather than in a column, and the first Saturday is close.
Squad2 Sep 2030
At 23 he is doing things this season that he could not do last season, and doing them every week. Form comes and goes; this has stayed long enough to be called something else.
Transfer targets2 Sep 2030
The deal with Al-Qadisiyah is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
Match31 Aug 2030
The wait goes on for Al-Njoom
4 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Squad2 Sep 2030
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Montassar Toumi and Al-Njoom agree another 2 years.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match19 Jan 2030
14 matches without a win for Al-Njoom
The run now stands at 14, and the questions being asked around Al-Njoom are no longer polite ones.
The terraces21 Jan 2030
Anger at Al-Njoom spills outside the ground
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
Player ratings21 Jan 2030
No sign of nerves from Sami Al-Sulami at 17 — 8.04
The hardest thing about being 17 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Sami Al-Sulami did not need any: 8.04, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
Squad21 Jan 2030
There were 6 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Match19 Jan 2030
Al-Jeel left with the points after a 1‑3 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Transfer targets21 Jan 2030
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Al-Ra'ed have kept their man, and Al-Njoom go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Looking ahead21 Jan 2030
Everything rides on Al-Mojzel
Both clubs in the mire, one fixture between them, and a ground that will be louder and more frightened than at any point in the season. Al-Njoom know what is at stake and so does everybody in the away end.
The dugout21 Jan 2030
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 1‑3 the manager left the room before anybody could ask which.
Transfer targets21 Jan 2030
A loan move for Yahya Abu Dahi is in the works
Al-Njoom have made the call to Al-Qadisiyah. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match12 Jan 2030
The wait goes on for Al-Njoom
13 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Squad14 Jan 2030
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 8 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
Market14 Jan 2030
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Al-Njoom, and it is not being withdrawn.
Transfer targets14 Jan 2030
Al-Njoom asked and Najran said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Match12 Jan 2030
Al-Ettifaq left with the points after a 1‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Player ratings14 Jan 2030
Marked 8.26 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
The dugout14 Jan 2030
the manager faces the questions
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” the manager after 1‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
Squad14 Jan 2030
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Al-Njoom this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Transfer targets14 Jan 2030
Al-Njoom have made the call to Al-Taawoun. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match29 Dec 2029
11 matches without a win for Al-Njoom
The run now stands at 11, and the questions being asked around Al-Njoom are no longer polite ones.
Match31 Dec 2029
Every point is an argument now for Al-Njoom
Position 16 and 6 points, and the table gets read bottom-up in this part of town. The calendar has stopped being a schedule and started being a countdown.
Boardroom31 Dec 2029
The scrutiny sharpens at Al-Njoom
Nobody upstairs has said anything, which is the loudest thing they could do. Results buy silence in this game; the account at Al-Njoom is running low.
Player ratings31 Dec 2029
A brace, and Sami Al-Sulami takes the afternoon — 8.06
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Sami Al-Sulami provided it, and the 8.06 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
Squad31 Dec 2029
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 7 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
Squad31 Dec 2029
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Al-Njoom can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Match29 Dec 2029
Ohod left with the points after a 2‑3 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
The terraces31 Dec 2029
He is 17 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.
The dugout31 Dec 2029
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 2‑3 the manager left the room before anybody could ask which.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match8 Dec 2029
Chastening afternoon for Al-Njoom
A 0‑5 beating by Damac was the sort of result that empties a stadium long before the final whistle.
Match8 Dec 2029
8 matches without a win for Al-Njoom
The run now stands at 8, and the questions being asked around Al-Njoom are no longer polite ones.
Squad10 Dec 2029
8 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
Market10 Dec 2029
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Match8 Dec 2029
Al-Njoom leaking at the back
6 matches, two or more conceded in every one of them. Sides that create as much as this can live with it for a while. Nobody lives with it forever.
The dugout10 Dec 2029
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Boardroom10 Dec 2029
The manager kept them in and said what needed saying. A response is expected on Saturday, and if it does not come the questions move upstairs.
The dugout10 Dec 2029
the manager: “No excuses”
“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 0‑5, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.
Player ratings10 Dec 2029
The cruellest goal, and it is Saeid Karimi's
A touch he did not want, a bounce he could not have read, and his name in the wrong column. There is no consoling a man after one of these, and Al-Njoom will not try tonight.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match3 Dec 2029
Every point is an argument now for Al-Njoom
Position 15 and 5 points, and the table gets read bottom-up in this part of town. The calendar has stopped being a schedule and started being a countdown.
Boardroom3 Dec 2029
Pressure builds in the Al-Njoom boardroom
The directors have stopped offering the manager public warmth. In football that is usually the stage before the short statement.
Match1 Dec 2029
No end in sight to Al-Njoom's wait for a win
7 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Al-Njoom has to find a result from somewhere.
Match1 Dec 2029
No clean sheets in sight for Al-Njoom
5 games now with at least two against. The back line has been rearranged, the goalkeeper has been backed publicly, and the goals keep going in anyway.
Match1 Dec 2029
Beaten 3‑4, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Match1 Dec 2029
Defending was optional and nobody took up the option. 7 goals between Al-Njoom and Al-Ta'ee, and not one of the people who paid to be there will ask for the money back.
Player ratings3 Dec 2029
A performance of 8.38 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
The dugout3 Dec 2029
the manager answers for it
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 3‑4, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
Squad3 Dec 2029
Four or five weekends of consistency, measured against everybody else in the division. A quieter compliment than an award and a more reliable one.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
The terraces26 Nov 2029
Anger at Al-Njoom spills outside the ground
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
Squad26 Nov 2029
There were 7 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Match24 Nov 2029
The wait goes on for Al-Njoom
6 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Market26 Nov 2029
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Al-Njoom can pretend not to have heard.
Match24 Nov 2029
Al-Njoom leaking at the back
4 matches, two or more conceded in every one of them. Sides that create as much as this can live with it for a while. Nobody lives with it forever.
Match24 Nov 2029
Ali Hajjas scored, and precious little else went right: 1‑2 to Al-Riyadh, and a quiet walk to the dressing room.
The dugout26 Nov 2029
the manager: “No excuses”
“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 1‑2, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.
Squad26 Nov 2029
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Sultan Al-Salem commits to Al-Njoom for another 3 years.
The dugout26 Nov 2029
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Musawenkosi Madonsela trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match5 Nov 2029
Every point is an argument now for Al-Njoom
Position 16 and 4 points, and the table gets read bottom-up in this part of town. The calendar has stopped being a schedule and started being a countdown.
Match3 Nov 2029
0‑4 to Al-Hazem, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.
The dugout5 Nov 2029
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
The dugout5 Nov 2029
The manager makes an example of Montassar Toumi
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Boardroom5 Nov 2029
The manager kept them in and said what needed saying. A response is expected on Saturday, and if it does not come the questions move upstairs.
The dugout5 Nov 2029
the manager: “No excuses”
“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 0‑4, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.
Squad5 Nov 2029
Words exchanged at Al-Njoom
Ibrahim Al-Mansour and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad5 Nov 2029
Four or five weekends of consistency, measured against everybody else in the division. A quieter compliment than an award and a more reliable one.
Squad5 Nov 2029
Whether it was the goalkeeper or the ten in front of him is the argument that will fill every conversation in town this week. 3 saves does not settle it either way.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad8 Oct 2029
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 14 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Match6 Oct 2029
11 matches without a win for Al-Njoom
The run now stands at 11, and the questions being asked around Al-Njoom are no longer polite ones.
Match6 Oct 2029
Beaten 1‑5 by Al-Jeel, and beaten everywhere it matters. The inquest starts on the training pitch on Monday morning.
Match6 Oct 2029
Al-Njoom are shipping goals every week
Two or more conceded in each of the last 11 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.
Match8 Oct 2029
Every point is an argument now for Al-Njoom
Position 16 and 0 points, and the table gets read bottom-up in this part of town. The calendar has stopped being a schedule and started being a countdown.
Match6 Oct 2029
6 goals. Both benches spent the second half looking at each other rather than at the pitch. Purists will complain about Al-Njoom and Al-Jeel in equal measure; everybody else had a wonderful time.
The dugout8 Oct 2029
Saeid Karimi gets it from the manager
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Boardroom8 Oct 2029
The manager kept them in and said what needed saying. A response is expected on Saturday, and if it does not come the questions move upstairs.
Squad8 Oct 2029
19 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
The terraces1 Oct 2029
The mood at Al-Njoom has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
Match29 Sep 2029
10 matches without a win for Al-Njoom
The run now stands at 10, and the questions being asked around Al-Njoom are no longer polite ones.
Match29 Sep 2029
Beaten 0‑4 by Al-Ettifaq, and beaten everywhere it matters. The inquest starts on the training pitch on Monday morning.
Match29 Sep 2029
Al-Njoom are shipping goals every week
Two or more conceded in each of the last 10 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.
The dugout1 Oct 2029
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Boardroom1 Oct 2029
Nobody left the Al-Njoom dressing room in a hurry
The door stayed shut a long time after the final whistle. What was said in there is between them; whether it worked is between them and Saturday.
The dugout1 Oct 2029
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 0‑4 defeat, delivered by the manager to a room that had heard them before.
The dugout1 Oct 2029
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
The dugout1 Oct 2029
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Musawenkosi Madonsela trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match1 Sep 2029
1‑4 to Al-Batin, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.
Market3 Sep 2029
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Abdulla Mohammed will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Al-Njoom the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad3 Sep 2029
6 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
Match1 Sep 2029
No end in sight to Al-Njoom's wait for a win
5 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Al-Njoom has to find a result from somewhere.
The dugout3 Sep 2029
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Boardroom3 Sep 2029
Window shuts: 11 in, 13 out at Al-Njoom
The deadline has passed and the squad is the squad. 11 arrived, 13 left, and everything else printed about this club last month was a rumour that stayed one.
Match1 Sep 2029
No clean sheets in sight for Al-Njoom
5 games now with at least two against. The back line has been rearranged, the goalkeeper has been backed publicly, and the goals keep going in anyway.
Transfer targets3 Sep 2029
Al-Njoom asked and Al-Khaleej said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Boardroom3 Sep 2029
The manager kept them in and said what needed saying. A response is expected on Saturday, and if it does not come the questions move upstairs.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match25 Aug 2029
Beaten 0‑4 by Damac, and beaten everywhere it matters. The inquest starts on the training pitch on Monday morning.
Transfer targets27 Aug 2029
The deal with Al-Mojzel is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
Match25 Aug 2029
4 matches without a win for Al-Njoom
The run now stands at 4, and the questions being asked around Al-Njoom are no longer polite ones.
Match25 Aug 2029
4 matches without a goal for Al-Njoom
The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 4 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.
Squad27 Aug 2029
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Al-Njoom know it.
Transfer targets27 Aug 2029
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
Match25 Aug 2029
Al-Njoom are shipping goals every week
Two or more conceded in each of the last 4 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.
Boardroom27 Aug 2029
Nobody left the Al-Njoom dressing room in a hurry
The door stayed shut a long time after the final whistle. What was said in there is between them; whether it worked is between them and Saturday.
The dugout27 Aug 2029
the manager answers for it
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑4, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.