Saad Al-Shehri

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Saad Al-Shehri played for Al-Ettifaq, Al-Nassr, Al-Qadsiah, Al-Jubail, and Al-Thoqbah. He was a member of the Saudi Arabia U20 national team in the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship in Nigeria. He began his managerial career with the Eastern Region Education Team in 2008. He later managed Al-Qadsiah's U17 team, achieving promotion to the U17 Premier League, and won the U19 Premier League with Al-Qadsiah in 2011–12. He worked as an assistant manager for Saudi Arabia U20 and won the U17 GCC Championship. On May 28, 2013, he was appointed manager of Al-Nassr's U19 team, leading them to the U19 Premier League championship in 2014–2015. He signed with Al-Nahda on June 16, 2017, but the contract was canceled for administrative reasons on July 13, 2017. On July 15, 2017, he signed to manage Al-Ettifaq's U23 team. On June 28, 2015, he was appointed Saudi Arabia U20 manager, leading them to the final of the 2016 AFC U-19 Championship (lost to Japan on penalties) and the Round of 16 of the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup. On December 10, 2017, he became Al-Ettifaq first-team manager until the end of the season, finishing fourth. On March 15, 2018, he took charge of the Saudi Arabia U23 national team. He led them to the 2020 Summer Olympics (first since 1996) as runners-up in the 2020 AFC U-23 Championship, but they crashed out of the Olympics group stage without a point. He won the 2022 AFC U-23 Asian Cup and the 2022 WAFF U-23 Championship. On December 23, 2022, he temporarily took charge of the senior national team for the 25th Arabian Gulf Cup, where Saudi Arabia was eliminated in the group stage with one win. He was again named interim coach after Hervé Renard's resignation. In January 2025, he was reappointed head coach of Al-Ettifaq, replacing Steven Gerrard.

In Their Own Story

The climax of Saad Al-Shehri's career arrived in the 2022 AFC U-23 Asian Cup final against Uzbekistan. With over 30,000 fans filling the stadium on home soil for the hosts, Saudi Arabia faced a tough contest until Ahmed Al-Ghamdi broke the deadlock in the 48th minute with a strike into the top corner. Just fifteen minutes later, Turki Al-Ammar found Firas Al-Buraikan, who fired a shot into the bottom corner to double the lead in the 74th minute. Despite desperate pushes from Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia held on to win their first continental title and secure their first Olympic appearance since 1996. This victory finally gave Al-Shehri his first major trophy with the national teams, correcting the heartbreak of previous finals against Japan and South Korea.

Reader's Guide

Saad Al-Shehri is a Saudi Arabian football manager known for his work with youth national teams. He led Saudi Arabia U23 to their first AFC U-23 Asian Cup title in 2022 and to the 2020 Summer Olympics. He has also managed Al-Ettifaq and Al-Nassr's youth teams.

Did You Know?

• Al-Shehri led Saudi Arabia U23 to their first AFC U-23 Asian Cup title in 2022.
• He managed Saudi Arabia at the 2020 Summer Olympics, their first appearance since 1996.
• He was a member of the Saudi Arabia U20 team at the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship.
• Al-Shehri won the WAFF U-23 Championship in 2022.