Italian Roberto Mancini, the coach of the Saudi national team, revealed the cause of the problem after the disappointing draw with Indonesia in the first round of the group stage in the third stage of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, with a score of 1-1.

The Saudi team was the party favored to win at the expense of the opponent with a big result, and everyone expected it to lead the group, but it stumbled in a draw.

Mancini said that Al-Akhdar's problem is the lack of Saudi players participating in the Saudi League, as there are 20 players in the national team who are not key players for their clubs.

The coach explained that the only solution is to intensify work on the players. Currently in the ranks of the Saudi national team.

Mancini confirmed that there are no solutions to limit their participation with their clubs due to the presence of 10 foreign players in the ranks of each team.