Saudi Pro League postponement gives Al Hilal and Al Nassr players extended rest

Simone Inzaghi and Ange Postecoglou have both responded to the unexpected postponement of Saudi Pro League fixtures by giving their players extended breaks.

The Al Hilal manager, Inzaghi, has granted his squad 10 days off, while Al Nassr head coach Postecoglou has approved a nine-day rest period, according to reports from Saudi Arabia.

The decisions followed the announcement by the Asian Football Confederation on Tuesday that the 2027 AFC Asian Cup will no longer begin in January. The tournament has instead been moved to December 2027.

The Saudi Pro League subsequently confirmed that matchweek 13, originally scheduled to take place from 5 to 7 November, would be postponed to a later date. The change means there is no immediate need to compress the domestic fixture schedule.

According to Saudi newspaper Al Riyadiyah, Inzaghi made his decision after Al Hilal’s AFC Champions League Elite match against Shabab Al Ahli. Al Hilal won the game 2-0 on Tuesday evening at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, in the fourth round of the league stage.

Postecoglou took a similar approach at Al Nassr. Saudi journalist Abdulaziz Al-Osaimi said the Australian manager had given his squad nine days off.

At Al Ittihad, German head coach Yens Wissing opted for a shorter break. Saudi journalist Majed Hood reported that the players had been given five days away from training.

The postponement of matchweek 13 has therefore created an opportunity for Saudi clubs to provide their squads with longer periods of rest. The teams will not return to competitive action until after the next international break.

The original league schedule had left clubs preparing for matches between 5 and 7 November, but the decision to delay the round has removed those immediate commitments. Al Hilal and Al Nassr have used the additional time to give their players extended leave, while Al Ittihad have chosen a five-day rest period.

The Asian Football Confederation’s decision to move the Asian Cup from January to December 2027 was the key development behind the change to the Saudi Pro League calendar. The league has not yet announced the rearranged date for matchweek 13.