{"id":2916,"date":"2022-10-30T20:30:00","date_gmt":"2022-10-30T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.theasiangame.net\/?p=2916"},"modified":"2026-09-25T11:24:41","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T01:54:41","slug":"al-dawsari-matures-into-saudi-arabias-not-so-secret-weapon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.theasiangame.net\/ro\/al-dawsari-matures-into-saudi-arabias-not-so-secret-weapon\/","title":{"rendered":"Al-Dawsari matures into Saudi Arabia’s not-so-secret weapon"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/figure>
\n

The Asian Game’s coverage of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 is proudly sponsored by SMC.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Ask any avid fan of Asian football who the best player on the continent was over the last few years, at club or international level, and most will likely single out Saudi star Salem Al-Dawsari.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Ahead of the player\u2019s second successive World Cup appearance, however, few outside of Asia will even recognise his name, let alone appreciate his undeniable quality and considerable CV that has grown from strength-to-strength since the last time he appeared on the global stage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For this, Qatar represents the potential defining point of a distinguished, if not turbulent career.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On paper, a one club man aside from a brief stint in Europe, Al-Dawsari\u2019s eleven-year spell at Saudi super club Al-Hilal<\/a> has only heralded just over 200 appearances, an eyebrow-raising figure even for those within Asia when you consider he has amassed over 65 caps for his country in that time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It alludes to the struggles he had, particularly early in his career with fitness, consistency, and temperament, to become the high-impact player we all see today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While that brief cameo in Europe (one solitary substitute appearance in Spain), indicates being an afterthought, possibly a regret, growing from that crucial juncture in a player\u2019s career, let alone a player from the Middle East, looks to have defined his legacy at home and abroad ever since.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jeddah born, Riyadh bred<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Tracing his steps back to his childhood, Al-Dawsari, later to become a modern-day legend in Saudi Arabia\u2019s capital Riyadh, was born and raised on the other side of the country, in the equally influential Jeddah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On his father\u2019s advice, his pilgrimage as a teen to move away from home to Saudi\u2019s first city, has come to define his status as a one true blue; in the colours of Al-Hilal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n