According to Saudi Arabian media reports, Portuguese coach Luís Castro, the head coach of Saudi team Al Nassr, has decided to exclude Sadio Mané from the team’s upcoming match against Al Ain from the United Arab Emirates in the quarter-finals of the AFC Champions League, scheduled to take place next Monday at the Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium.
The Riyadh newspaper reported that Castro has excluded Sadio Mané along with defender Emiric LaPorte and full-back Alex Telles from the confrontation against Al Ain, where he is entitled to register five foreign players in addition to one Asian player for each match.
The newspaper pointed out that during the main training session this Saturday morning, Castro relied on the six foreign players: Cristiano Ronaldo, Anderson Talisca, Marcelo Brozovic, Otávio, David Ospina, and the Australian Aziz Behich, in preparation for their presence in the Al Ain match.
The match between Al Nassr and Al Ain will witness the return of Colombian goalkeeper David Ospina to participate with the team after his absence due to injury, replacing the injured Walid Abdullah and Raghad Al-Najjar, in addition to the suspended Nawaf Al-Aqidi.
Winger Abdulrahman Ghareeb continues to be absent from Al Nassr’s ranks, undergoing a rehabilitation program due to a muscle injury that has kept him out of the last five matches, while right-back Sultan Al-Ghannam returns, expected to participate in the game after suffering a hamstring tear against Al-Fateh Club last February.
