Saudi Arabia's Talal Haji becomes youngest player in AFC Asian Cup history

Published at :January 25, 2024 at 10:00 PM

Modified at :January 25, 2024 at 10:01 PM

(Courtesy : Saudi Arabia NT)

Talal Haji was the top scorer of the U-17 Arab Cup.

The 2023 AFC Asian Cup is up and running in Qatar. A lot of teams have already played their opening games. Three time Asian Champions and 2027 AFC Asian Cup hosts Saudi Arabia will open their campaign against Oman on January 16.

The Green Falcons have called up their 16-year-old prodigy Talal Haji for the AFC Asian Cup. Haji’s inclusion in Saudi Arabia’s squad makes him by far the youngest player in the history of the tournament.

About Talal Haji

The young gun is a part of Saudi Pro League giants Al-Ittihad’s first team. He made his debut for Al-Ittihad in their 2-1 win over Al Fateh. And by doing so he became the youngest player ever to play in the Saudi Pro League at 16 years and five days old.

Talal Haji has represented Saudi Arabia at the 2022 U-17 Arab Cup where he scored two back-to-back hat-tricks and finished as the tournament’s top scorer. He had also been a part of the 2023 AFC U-17 Asian Cup. Haji is known for his goal-scoring abilities and has scored 13 goals in as many appearances for the U-17 side.

Saudi Arabia’s matches

As mentioned earlier, Saudi Arabia will open their campaign with a clash against Oman on Tuesday. They are clubbed alongside Thailand, Oman and Kyrgyz Republic in Group F. The Green Falcons are the favourites to not just win their group but also the AFC Asian Cup this year.

After the clash against Oman, Saudi Arabia will face off against Kyrgyz Republic on January 21 and will then face Thailand in their third match on January 25. The three time Asian Champions have not tasted glory since 1996.

They made it to the RO16 in 2019 and will be keen to go all the way to lift Asia’s flagship tournament. Their fans have high hopes from them especially after their heroics against 2022 FIFA World Cup Champions Argentina.

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