From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad10 May 2027
Words exchanged at Najran
Haman Mandjan 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.
The dugout10 May 2027
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Najran, and both men came out saying it was fine.
The dugout10 May 2027
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Omar Al-Ruwaili has written the date down.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match3 May 2027
Najran are in real trouble now
Position 14, 5 points, and a fixture list with fewer games left in it than excuses. The arithmetic is not cruel yet, but it has stopped being kind.
Boardroom3 May 2027
Pressure builds in the Najran boardroom
The directors have stopped offering the manager public warmth. In football that is usually the stage before the short statement.
Squad3 May 2027
A falling-out at Najran
Waleed Al-Ahmad and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Boardroom3 May 2027
$3.1M taken back off the Najran table
What was available in the summer has quietly gone. Upstairs nobody will call it a change of ambition; downstairs nobody will call it anything else.
Squad3 May 2027
Najran will explain it as a decision about the team, and it may well be one. A dressing room has never once read it that way.
Squad3 May 2027
The captaincy goes to Hassan Al-Tambakti. It is not a job that wins matches, but a dressing room always notices who is given it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad26 Apr 2027
Tempers go at Najran
Hassan Al-Tambakti was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The dugout26 Apr 2027
The manager makes an example of Hussain Habkor
“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 dugout26 Apr 2027
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Omar Al-Ruwaili has written the date down.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The terraces19 Apr 2027
Supporters organise against the Najran 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.
Squad19 Apr 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Najran this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout19 Apr 2027
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Najran. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad12 Apr 2027
Tempers go at Najran
Saad Al-Mosa was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The dugout12 Apr 2027
Ichem Ferrah knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Najran, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Squad12 Apr 2027
The table has started to be checked before the results are in, and that is always the tell. Nobody at Najran says the word out loud, and everybody in the building is thinking it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Boardroom5 Apr 2027
The caretaker keeps it: Ali Al-Enezi 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.
Match5 Apr 2027
Every point is an argument now for Najran
Position 14 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.
The dugout5 Apr 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Najran may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad5 Apr 2027
Words exchanged at Najran
Haman Mandjan 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 Apr 2027
It will be explained as a change for the team and it may even be one. Nobody who has worn one believes that, and neither does the man who has just had it taken away.
Squad5 Apr 2027
Not a new contract, not a new number: a new place in the manager’s thinking, which is the only promotion in football that actually matters. Amer Khalil has moved up it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad29 Mar 2027
A falling-out at Najran
Haman Mandjan and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout29 Mar 2027
Waleed Al-Ahmad asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
The dugout29 Mar 2027
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Najran. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The terraces22 Mar 2027
The mood at Najran 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.
The dugout22 Mar 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Najran may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad22 Mar 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Najran this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout22 Mar 2027
Amer Khalil 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.
Squad22 Mar 2027
He goes off to be somebody else’s player for a fortnight. Najran lose him for the window and would like him returned in the condition he left.
Squad22 Mar 2027
Hassan Al-Tambakti joins up with his country. Najran lose him for the window and would like him back in one piece.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad15 Mar 2027
A falling-out at Najran
Waleed Al-Ahmad and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Boardroom15 Mar 2027
Najran still without a manager
14 days since the seat came open, a list of names doing the rounds, and nobody has signed anything. Every week this drags on the shortlist gets shorter.
Squad15 Mar 2027
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Najran are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Squad15 Mar 2027
The table has started to be checked before the results are in, and that is always the tell. Nobody at Najran says the word out loud, and everybody in the building is thinking it.
The dugout15 Mar 2027
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Bassem Ben Aissa trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Squad15 Mar 2027
A year in and the language has not come, the city has not opened up, and he eats alone more often than anybody at Najran would like to admit. It is showing on Saturdays.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Boardroom8 Mar 2027
Four paragraphs on the club website, none of them about football. The board thanked him, wished him well, and had the search under way before the page went up.
Match8 Mar 2027
Every point is an argument now for Najran
Position 14 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.
Boardroom8 Mar 2027
“I am not thinking past Saturday, and I would advise nobody else to.” The caretaker’s first rule is to pretend the job is small; Ali Al-Enezi recited it perfectly.
Squad8 Mar 2027
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Abdelilah Hafidi commits to Najran for another 2 years.
Squad8 Mar 2027
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Najran can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Squad8 Mar 2027
A falling-out at Najran
Hassan Al-Tambakti and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Boardroom8 Mar 2027
The bill for the sacking has arrived. Saad Al-Sulami leaves with $27.6K for the time left on his deal, and that money buys the club nothing it can put on the pitch.
The dugout8 Mar 2027
Nothing resets a career like somebody arriving who did not pick the side last season. Hassan Al-Tambakti has taken the hint, and Najran are getting a version of him the previous regime had stopped seeing.
The dugout8 Mar 2027
The manager makes an example of Ahmed Al-Shehri
“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
Match27 Feb 2027
No end in sight to Najran's wait for a win
27 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Najran has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad1 Mar 2027
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.
Match1 Mar 2027
The season ends: position 14 for Najran
The last league game has been played and the table has stopped moving: 5 points. The summer begins on Monday, and so does the argument about what it all meant.
The dugout1 Mar 2027
“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.
Squad1 Mar 2027
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Najran can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Squad1 Mar 2027
Words exchanged at Najran
Hassan Al-Tambakti 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.
Match27 Feb 2027
Haman Mandjan scored, and precious little else went right: 1‑3 to Al-Nassr, and a quiet walk to the dressing room.
Squad1 Mar 2027
Diego Venancio wants to finish where he started
Every long career reaches the week the player starts thinking about the last one. He would like it to be at the club that first put him on a pitch, and Najran now know that too.
Player ratings1 Mar 2027
Marked 8.00 — 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.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match20 Feb 2027
No end in sight to Najran's wait for a win
26 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Najran has to find a result from somewhere.
The terraces22 Feb 2027
Supporters organise against the Najran 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.
Squad22 Feb 2027
Saad Al-Mosa in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Najran this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match20 Feb 2027
Beaten 1‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
The dugout22 Feb 2027
The manager makes an example of Saad Al-Mosa
“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.
Player ratings22 Feb 2027
Successful dribbles: 16. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
The dugout22 Feb 2027
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Saad Al-Sulami after 1‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
The dugout22 Feb 2027
The manager has not finished forgetting Raghid Najjar's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
Player ratings22 Feb 2027
Chances created: 10. Not on the scoresheet and not remotely anonymous — a passing performance that pulled a defence apart without leaving a mark on the column that gets read.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match13 Feb 2027
The wait goes on for Najran
25 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.
Match13 Feb 2027
Chastening afternoon for Najran
A 0‑3 beating by Al-Qadisiyah was the sort of result that empties a stadium long before the final whistle.
Squad15 Feb 2027
Tempers go at Najran
Haman Mandjan was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The dugout15 Feb 2027
“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.
Boardroom15 Feb 2027
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.
Player ratings15 Feb 2027
Successful dribbles: 16. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Squad15 Feb 2027
Raghid Najjar lets one through his hands
A defender's mistake gets tidied up by somebody else; a goalkeeper's ends up in the net. He knew before the ball crossed the line, and so did everybody in the ground.
The dugout15 Feb 2027
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑3, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
The dugout15 Feb 2027
A promise honoured for Amer Khalil
It is not much of a headline and it is the reason players believe the next promise. Najran told Amer Khalil something would happen and then it happened, which in this industry passes for remarkable.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match6 Feb 2027
No end in sight to Najran's wait for a win
24 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Najran has to find a result from somewhere.
Match8 Feb 2027
Every point is an argument now for Najran
Position 14 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.
Boardroom8 Feb 2027
The board’s statement ran to three sentences and one of them mentioned results. Saad Al-Sulami has managed long enough to translate: win soon, or the next statement is shorter.
Squad8 Feb 2027
A falling-out at Najran
Hassan Al-Tambakti and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Boardroom8 Feb 2027
The paperwork is done long before the player is. Ahmed Al-Mhemaid has agreed terms to come here when his current deal runs out, which means Najran have spent a summer's transfer budget on a phone call.
Transfer targets8 Feb 2027
Najran asked and Monza said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Match6 Feb 2027
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
The dugout8 Feb 2027
“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 0‑1, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.
Squad8 Feb 2027
“I did not come here to warm up in front of people.” He is out of contract eventually, he is old enough to count the weeks, and Najran will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match30 Jan 2027
No end in sight to Najran's wait for a win
23 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Najran has to find a result from somewhere.
Boardroom1 Feb 2027
Pressure builds in the Najran boardroom
The directors have stopped offering the manager public warmth. In football that is usually the stage before the short statement.
Squad1 Feb 2027
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.
The dugout1 Feb 2027
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Najran have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Boardroom1 Feb 2027
Najran close the window on a squad of their own making
2 in and 0 out, and no more changes for months. The manager has what he has, the supporters have their opinion of it, and the table will have the last word.
Transfer targets1 Feb 2027
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Najran have done the hard part with Pisa, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
Squad1 Feb 2027
Words exchanged at Najran
Hassan Al-Tambakti 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.
Transfer targets1 Feb 2027
Najran asked and Al-Ahli said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Looking ahead1 Feb 2027
A six-pointer for Najran
Hajer next, and both sides can do the sum. Win and the table looks different; lose and it looks the way everybody has been fearing.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match23 Jan 2027
No end in sight to Najran's wait for a win
22 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Najran has to find a result from somewhere.
The terraces25 Jan 2027
Supporters organise against the Najran 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.
Transfer targets25 Jan 2027
Najran had done everything except persuade the man himself. He stays at Sassuolo, and the manager goes back to the drawing board with the money still in the bank.
Squad25 Jan 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Najran this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Transfer targets25 Jan 2027
Najran asked and Al-Ittihad said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Player ratings25 Jan 2027
Bandar Darwish was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.00. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
Match23 Jan 2027
A point taken on 91 minutes is worth exactly one point and considerably more than that to a dressing room. This side does not stop, which is a reputation worth more than the result.
The dugout25 Jan 2027
Raghid Najjar is still being punished for one mistake
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
Match23 Jan 2027
A 2‑2 draw with Al-Faisaly leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match16 Jan 2027
21 matches without a win for Najran
The run now stands at 21, and the questions being asked around Najran are no longer polite ones.
Match16 Jan 2027
Chastening afternoon for Najran
A 0‑3 beating by Al-Hilal was the sort of result that empties a stadium long before the final whistle.
Market18 Jan 2027
The fee is $4.7M, the contract is signed, and the argument about whether he is worth it can begin. Al-Hilal drove a hard bargain; time will say who won it.
Match16 Jan 2027
Najran cannot find the net
6 games without scoring. Strikers stop looking up, midfielders take the extra touch, and every shot that clears the bar is followed by a groan that has been building since the last goal.
Transfer targets18 Jan 2027
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.
The terraces18 Jan 2027
Boards get told what they have done wrong for years and hear nothing on the days they get it right. This is one of those days: Hassan Al-Tambakti from Al-Hilal for $4.7M, and a ticket office having a very good morning.
Transfer targets18 Jan 2027
Najran asked and Al-Nahda said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Squad18 Jan 2027
Tempers go at Najran
Diego Venancio was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The dugout18 Jan 2027
The manager makes an example of Diego Venancio
“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
Match9 Jan 2027
20 matches without a win for Najran
The run now stands at 20, and the questions being asked around Najran are no longer polite ones.
Match11 Jan 2027
Najran sink to position 14
3 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.
Match9 Jan 2027
0‑3 to Al-Ittihad, 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.
Transfer targets11 Jan 2027
The clubs have shaken hands with Al-Hilal; the player has not yet. Personal terms are next, and personal terms are where more deals die than anybody prints.
Match9 Jan 2027
Najran cannot find the net
5 games without scoring. Strikers stop looking up, midfielders take the extra touch, and every shot that clears the bar is followed by a groan that has been building since the last goal.
Squad11 Jan 2027
Words exchanged at Najran
Aboubacar Traoré 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.
Squad11 Jan 2027
It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph a local paper has to write. 34 years old, 3 points down on where he was, and a body that has started charging interest on a career.
Transfer targets11 Jan 2027
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Al-Nassr have kept their man, and Najran go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
The dugout11 Jan 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Raghid Najjar, and the manager let it.
In brief
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Boardroom
Nobody left the Najran dressing room in a hurry
-
The dugout
Saad Al-Sulami answers for it
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Looking ahead
A test against the best for Najran
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match2 Jan 2027
19 matches without a win for Najran
The run now stands at 19, and the questions being asked around Najran are no longer polite ones.
Boardroom4 Jan 2027
Pressure builds in the Najran boardroom
The directors have stopped offering the manager public warmth. In football that is usually the stage before the short statement.
Market4 Jan 2027
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Najran can pretend not to have heard.
Match2 Jan 2027
The goals have deserted Najran
4 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Najran can tell you which week it ends in.
Squad4 Jan 2027
A falling-out at Najran
Saad Al-Mosa and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Transfer targets4 Jan 2027
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.
Player ratings4 Jan 2027
Successful dribbles: 17. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.
The dugout4 Jan 2027
The manager has not finished forgetting Aboubacar Traoré's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
Transfer targets4 Jan 2027
A loan enquiry to Al-Ittihad: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match26 Dec 2026
The wait goes on for Najran
18 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 terraces28 Dec 2026
Supporters organise against the Najran 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.
Squad28 Dec 2026
9 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.
Squad28 Dec 2026
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Najran this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match26 Dec 2026
The goals have deserted Najran
3 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Najran can tell you which week it ends in.
Match26 Dec 2026
0‑1 to Al-Khaleej, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Looking ahead28 Dec 2026
A six-pointer for Najran
Al-Ra'ed next, and both sides can do the sum. Win and the table looks different; lose and it looks the way everybody has been fearing.
The dugout28 Dec 2026
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Saad Al-Sulami after 0‑1, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
The dugout28 Dec 2026
The manager makes an example of Rayan Fallatah
“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
Match19 Dec 2026
17 matches without a win for Najran
The run now stands at 17, and the questions being asked around Najran are no longer polite ones.
Squad21 Dec 2026
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 11 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
Match19 Dec 2026
Chastening afternoon for Najran
A 0‑3 beating by Al-Taawoun was the sort of result that empties a stadium long before the final whistle.
The dugout21 Dec 2026
“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.
Squad21 Dec 2026
Tempers go at Najran
Haman Mandjan was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Boardroom21 Dec 2026
Nobody left the Najran 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 dugout21 Dec 2026
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑3, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
The dugout21 Dec 2026
The manager makes an example of Ali Al-Makrami
“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.
Player ratings21 Dec 2026
Successful dribbles: 12. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match12 Dec 2026
16 matches without a win for Najran
The run now stands at 16, and the questions being asked around Najran are no longer polite ones.
Match14 Dec 2026
Najran are in real trouble now
Position 14, 2 points, and a fixture list with fewer games left in it than excuses. The arithmetic is not cruel yet, but it has stopped being kind.
Squad14 Dec 2026
There were 8 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.
Squad14 Dec 2026
Words exchanged at Najran
Haman Mandjan 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.
Match12 Dec 2026
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
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 0‑1 defeat, delivered by Saad Al-Sulami to a room that had heard them before.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
“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.
Player ratings14 Dec 2026
Successful dribbles: 14. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.
Squad14 Dec 2026
One yellow too many, and a match watched from the stand. The most avoidable absence in football, and Najran will feel it on Saturday.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match5 Dec 2026
15 matches without a win for Najran
The run now stands at 15, and the questions being asked around Najran are no longer polite ones.
Squad7 Dec 2026
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.
The dugout7 Dec 2026
“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.
Squad7 Dec 2026
A falling-out at Najran
Aboubacar Traoré and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Match5 Dec 2026
Najran rescue it on 89 minutes
Behind, and beaten by any honest reading, until minute 89. Al-Ahli had the points in their pocket and a corner of the ground still believed, which is generally when it happens.
Match5 Dec 2026
It finished 1‑1, and it somehow always looked like it would. One of those afternoons where the table moves less than the tempers.
The dugout7 Dec 2026
Raghid Najjar gets picked when it counts
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Raghid Najjar is on it.
The dugout7 Dec 2026
The manager’s verdict
“I am frustrated, honestly. We did enough to win and we did not win.” Saad Al-Sulami was not hiding it after 1‑1, and nobody in the Najran dressing room was either.
Squad7 Dec 2026
The first one is the one every signing is asked about until it arrives. It has arrived, and he can stop being asked.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match28 Nov 2026
No end in sight to Najran's wait for a win
14 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Najran has to find a result from somewhere.
The terraces30 Nov 2026
The mood at Najran 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.
Match28 Nov 2026
0‑5 to Al-Nassr, 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.
Squad30 Nov 2026
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Squad30 Nov 2026
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Najran this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout30 Nov 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Abdelilah Hafidi, and the manager let it.
Squad30 Nov 2026
200 games in the shirt. Nobody sets out to build a record like that; it happens to a certain kind of player at a certain kind of club, and this town knows what it has.
Match30 Nov 2026
The half-term report on Najran
Position 14, 1 points, and every result so far reduced to one line. The second half of the season starts with the same squad and a different set of expectations.
Boardroom30 Nov 2026
Doors closed at Najran
The music was off and the showers ran late. What was said in that dressing room stays there, but Saturday will publish the minutes.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match21 Nov 2026
The wait goes on for Najran
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.
Squad23 Nov 2026
Tempers go at Najran
Aboubacar Traoré was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Match21 Nov 2026
A bad afternoon for Najran against Al-Wehda
1‑2 to Al-Wehda, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
The dugout23 Nov 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Raghid Najjar, and the manager let it.
The dugout23 Nov 2026
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Saad Al-Sulami after 1‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
Squad23 Nov 2026
One booking too many, and Saad Al-Mosa sits out. Najran lose him for the sort of avoidable reason that makes a manager's week longer.
Player ratings23 Nov 2026
Successful dribbles: 12. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Looking ahead23 Nov 2026
Al-Nassr next, and one man in the Najran dressing room knows their training ground better than his own. The reception will tell him what they thought of him.
The dugout23 Nov 2026
The shape wanted a different profile against this opponent, which is a real football answer and no comfort at all to the man it is about. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match16 Nov 2026
Every point is an argument now for Najran
Position 14 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.
Squad16 Nov 2026
Words exchanged at Najran
Saad Al-Mosa 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.
Looking ahead16 Nov 2026
Al-Wehda next, and one man in the Najran dressing room knows their training ground better than his own. The reception will tell him what they thought of him.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match7 Nov 2026
No end in sight to Najran's wait for a win
12 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Najran has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad9 Nov 2026
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 11 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
Match7 Nov 2026
6 matches without a goal for Najran
The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 6 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.
Squad9 Nov 2026
A falling-out at Najran
Haman Mandjan and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Match7 Nov 2026
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
The dugout9 Nov 2026
It is not much of a headline and it is the reason players believe the next promise. Najran told Saad Al-Mosa something would happen and then it happened, which in this industry passes for remarkable.
The dugout9 Nov 2026
“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 0‑1, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.
The dugout9 Nov 2026
Raghid Najjar gets picked when it counts
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Raghid Najjar is on it.
The dugout9 Nov 2026
The shape wanted a different profile against this opponent, which is a real football answer and no comfort at all to the man it is about. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match31 Oct 2026
No end in sight to Najran's wait for a win
11 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Najran has to find a result from somewhere.
The terraces2 Nov 2026
Anger at Najran 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.
Match31 Oct 2026
Najran cannot find the net
5 games without scoring. Strikers stop looking up, midfielders take the extra touch, and every shot that clears the bar is followed by a groan that has been building since the last goal.
Squad2 Nov 2026
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Najran this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match31 Oct 2026
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Player ratings2 Nov 2026
Successful dribbles: 18. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
The dugout2 Nov 2026
A promise honoured at Najran
Something was said to Haman Mandjan and then it happened. In this industry that passes for remarkable, and the dressing room noticed faster than any supporter could.
The dugout2 Nov 2026
“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 0‑1, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.
The dugout2 Nov 2026
The manager makes an example of Ali Al-Makrami
“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
Match24 Oct 2026
10 matches without a win for Najran
The run now stands at 10, and the questions being asked around Najran are no longer polite ones.
Match24 Oct 2026
A hiding for Najran
Beaten 0‑6 by Al-Fateh, and beaten everywhere it matters. The inquest starts on the training pitch on Monday morning.
Squad26 Oct 2026
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 6 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
Match24 Oct 2026
The goals have deserted Najran
4 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Najran can tell you which week it ends in.
Squad26 Oct 2026
Tempers go at Najran
Haman Mandjan was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Match24 Oct 2026
Defending was optional and nobody took up the option. 6 goals between Najran and Al-Fateh, and not one of the people who paid to be there will ask for the money back.
Match24 Oct 2026
Najran 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.
Boardroom26 Oct 2026
Doors closed at Najran
The music was off and the showers ran late. What was said in that dressing room stays there, but Saturday will publish the minutes.
Squad26 Oct 2026
Too much change too quickly at Najran
13 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match17 Oct 2026
No end in sight to Najran's wait for a win
9 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Najran has to find a result from somewhere.
Match17 Oct 2026
0‑3 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.
Match19 Oct 2026
Every point is an argument now for Najran
Position 13 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.
Squad19 Oct 2026
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.
The dugout19 Oct 2026
Faisal Al-Essa: that is not what I was promised
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Najran have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad19 Oct 2026
A muscle injury sidelines Abdelilah Hafidi for 17 days
Nobody makes a documentary about a hamstring and everybody in the game fears one. Najran will be careful with the return date, because the second one is always worse than the first.
Squad19 Oct 2026
Words exchanged at Najran
Aboubacar Traoré 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.
Match17 Oct 2026
The goals have deserted Najran
3 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Najran can tell you which week it ends in.
Boardroom19 Oct 2026
Nobody left the Najran 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
The dugout12 Oct 2026
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Najran may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad12 Oct 2026
Form comes and goes; this has not gone. Amer Khalil is 22, and the version of him training now would not have got into the side he was in a year ago.
Squad12 Oct 2026
A falling-out at Najran
Diego Venancio and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout12 Oct 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Mohammed Umar Bala, and the manager let it.
The dugout12 Oct 2026
Raghid Najjar gets picked when it counts
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Raghid Najjar is on it.
Looking ahead12 Oct 2026
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Al-Faisaly in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match3 Oct 2026
0‑3 to Al-Hilal, 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.
Match3 Oct 2026
The wait goes on for Najran
8 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.
Squad5 Oct 2026
7 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.
Squad5 Oct 2026
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Najran this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad5 Oct 2026
“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 Najran know it.
The dugout5 Oct 2026
“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.
Boardroom5 Oct 2026
Nobody left the Najran 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 dugout5 Oct 2026
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 0‑3 defeat, delivered by Saad Al-Sulami to a room that had heard them before.
The dugout5 Oct 2026
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Najran, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad28 Sep 2026
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.
Match26 Sep 2026
No end in sight to Najran's wait for a win
7 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Najran has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad28 Sep 2026
Tempers go at Najran
Saad Al-Mosa was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Match26 Sep 2026
Al-Ittihad left with the points after a 0‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Squad28 Sep 2026
Najran are still strangers to each other
13 new signings in one window. Every one may be an upgrade and the side can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild the verdicts never mention.
The dugout28 Sep 2026
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
Looking ahead28 Sep 2026
A test against the best for Najran
The team at the top of the table next, and the honest measure of where this side actually is. Anybody can beat the club below them; the question is what happens against Al-Hilal.
The dugout28 Sep 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Faisal Al-Essa, and the manager let it.
Looking ahead28 Sep 2026
Every squad has one of these fixtures for somebody every season. This one is Haman Mandjan’s: the club that knew him first, the supporters who will decide in the first minute whether to applaud, and Najran needing him to play as if none of it matters.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match19 Sep 2026
6 matches without a win for Najran
The run now stands at 6, and the questions being asked around Najran are no longer polite ones.
Squad21 Sep 2026
Words exchanged at Najran
Haman Mandjan 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.
The dugout21 Sep 2026
Saad Al-Mosa 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.
Squad21 Sep 2026
37 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Match19 Sep 2026
A goal on 85 minutes turned three points into one and a good afternoon into an argument about game management that will run until Saturday.
Player ratings21 Sep 2026
Nobody on the pitch touched Haman Mandjan
7.76, and no serious argument from anybody who was there. Najran had eleven men on the pitch and one of them decided how it went.
Match19 Sep 2026
1‑1, and both dressing rooms will call it two points lost. A draw that asked plenty of questions and answered none of them.
The dugout21 Sep 2026
“It is not the end of the world and it is not good enough. Both of those are true.” The manager, after a 1‑1 draw, said the honest thing and then went to say it again inside.
Squad21 Sep 2026
Every signing waits for it and every press conference asks about it until it comes. It has come, Najran have their man off the mark, and the second one is always easier.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match9 Sep 2026
The cup run ends for Najran
0‑0 against Al-Batin, and the road stops here. Cup exits are quick deaths — no second leg, no next week, just the league from now until May.
Squad14 Sep 2026
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.
Transfer targets14 Sep 2026
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.
Match12 Sep 2026
No end in sight to Najran's wait for a win
5 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Najran has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad14 Sep 2026
A falling-out at Najran
Haman Mandjan and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout14 Sep 2026
“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.
Player ratings14 Sep 2026
A penalty is the one moment in football with nowhere to hide, and he did not score it. The walk back was long and the week will be longer.
The dugout14 Sep 2026
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Saad Al-Sulami after 1‑3, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Transfer targets7 Sep 2026
The offer went to Al-Ahli this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.
Boardroom7 Sep 2026
Najran close the window on a squad of their own making
25 in and 0 out, and no more changes for months. The manager has what he has, the supporters have their opinion of it, and the table will have the last word.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Saad Al-Mosa in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Najran this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Transfer targets7 Sep 2026
Najran 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.
Squad7 Sep 2026
The manager has re-ordered his thinking and Diego Venancio has come out of it lower. He will be told it is temporary, and the players who have heard that before will avoid his eye.
Market7 Sep 2026
“We are a long way apart, and pretending otherwise helps nobody.” Neither side is close, and the calendar is not on the club's side.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Not a new contract, not a new number: a new place in the manager’s thinking, which is the only promotion in football that actually matters. Saad Al-Mosa has moved up it.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Abdelilah Hafidi retires from international football
“26 caps. I have loved every one, and it is somebody else’s turn.” At 34 he has stepped away from his country and is going nowhere at Najran.
The dugout7 Sep 2026
“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
Match29 Aug 2026
Chastening afternoon for Najran
A 0‑3 beating by Al-Taawoun was the sort of result that empties a stadium long before the final whistle.
Squad31 Aug 2026
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.
Player ratings31 Aug 2026
Successful dribbles: 24. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Market31 Aug 2026
The paperwork is done: Bandar Darwish joins from Al-Wehda in a deal worth $810.0K. Now comes the harder part.
Transfer targets31 Aug 2026
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Al Shabab keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
Squad31 Aug 2026
Tempers go at Najran
Aboubacar Traoré was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Market31 Aug 2026
The phone has started ringing about Abdulmajeed Al-Arishi again, and this time the name on the line is Al-Shoulla. Najran are listening politely and promising nothing.
Transfer targets31 Aug 2026
Najran asked and Al-Fateh 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 dugout31 Aug 2026
The manager makes an example of Raghid Najjar
“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.
In brief
-
Boardroom
Inquest at Najran
-
Squad
13 new faces, and Najran are still learning each other
-
The dugout
The manager’s verdict
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match22 Aug 2026
1‑6 to Al-Shabab, 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.
Squad24 Aug 2026
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.
Transfer targets24 Aug 2026
The deal with Al-Wehda 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.
Market24 Aug 2026
“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 Najran, and it is not being withdrawn.
Boardroom24 Aug 2026
The number the board signed off was not enough. It has been asked again and raised its own offer to $805.0K — a club that wants Bandar Darwish enough to be asked twice.
Market24 Aug 2026
The fee is $150.0K, the contract is signed, and the argument about whether he is worth it can begin. Al-Faisaly drove a hard bargain; time will say who won it.
Squad24 Aug 2026
Words exchanged at Najran
Diego Venancio 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.
Match22 Aug 2026
Defending was optional and nobody took up the option. 7 goals between Najran and Al-Shabab, and not one of the people who paid to be there will ask for the money back.
Transfer targets24 Aug 2026
Najran asked and Al Jazira said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match15 Aug 2026
A hiding for Najran
Beaten 0‑5 by Al-Ahli, and beaten everywhere it matters. The inquest starts on the training pitch on Monday morning.
Squad17 Aug 2026
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.
Transfer targets17 Aug 2026
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Al-Ahli have kept their man, and Najran go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Market17 Aug 2026
Najran pay Al-Nassr $1.8M for a proper upgrade
Al-Nassr did not want to sell and the number is why they did. $1.8M for Raghid Najjar, and the expectation that arrives with him is the kind no amount of settling-in period softens.
Market17 Aug 2026
Al-Shoulla come back empty-handed
The bid was some way short and Najran did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Transfer targets17 Aug 2026
Najran have gone to Al-Wehda with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.
Boardroom17 Aug 2026
The number the board signed off was not enough. It has been asked again and raised its own offer to $851.0K — a club that wants Bandar Darwish enough to be asked twice.
Transfer targets17 Aug 2026
Najran offered $790.0K; Al-Wehda said it was not close. The manager will be told the money is still there for the right player, which is what managers are told.
Transfer targets17 Aug 2026
Najran have gone to Al-Faisaly with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad10 Aug 2026
Footballers are asked about their boyhood club so often that nobody listens to the answer. Aboubacar Traoré has just signed for Najran, and for once the answer mattered.
Transfer targets10 Aug 2026
$1.8M on the table at Al-Nassr. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
Transfer targets10 Aug 2026
The offer went to Al-Wehda this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.
Transfer targets10 Aug 2026
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Al-Wehda keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
Squad10 Aug 2026
Tempers go at Najran
Aboubacar Traoré was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Market10 Aug 2026
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Turki Al-Mutairi has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Market10 Aug 2026
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Abdullah Al-Khaibari has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Market10 Aug 2026
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Salem Al-Sultan has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Market10 Aug 2026
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Hassan Al-Subaie is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad3 Aug 2026
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Diego Venancio and Najran agree another 2 years.
Squad3 Aug 2026
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Najran this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Transfer targets3 Aug 2026
Najran have made the call to Al-Wehda. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
Transfer targets3 Aug 2026
A loan enquiry to Al-Ittihad: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.
Transfer targets3 Aug 2026
A loan move for Amer Khalil is in the works
Najran have made the call to Al-Ta'ee. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
Market3 Aug 2026
“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.