Portuguese João Cancelo, right-back of Al Hilal, surprised his club's management by rejecting an urgent request before the anticipated Riyadh Derby against Al Nassr in the Roshn Saudi League.

Al Hilal prepared to host Al Nassr at the Kingdom Arena stadium on Monday evening at 8:30 PM, as part of the fifteenth round of the Saudi Professional League.

The program "Malaeb," broadcast on "Al Arabiya FM," reported that Al Hilal's management sought to register Cancelo on the local list to include him in the derby match, but the player completely refused the idea.

Cancelo is close to leaving the Saudi League, as he is nearing a return to European fields, with his name linked to a six-month loan move to Spanish club Barcelona.

Inter Milan entered negotiations with Al Hilal to sign Cancelo during the January transfer window, but the player preferred to move to Barcelona, rejecting the idea of playing in the Italian league.

Al Hilal initially agreed to Cancelo's transfer to Inter Milan to facilitate the signing of one of the defenders, Francesco Acerbi or Stefan de Vrij, but the player's desire decided his destination.

This comes after Al Hilal announced the signing of Spaniard Pablo Mari from Fiorentina, in addition to acquiring winger Sultan Mendesh from Al Taawoun, as part of their winter moves.

Al Hilal continues to lead the Roshn Saudi League standings with 35 points, four points ahead of Al Nassr after fifteen rounds of competition.