Wissing Makes Bold Call as En-Nesyri Shines

Jens Wissing wasted no time making a hard call in his first Roshn Saudi League outing of the season. The Al-Ittihad head coach built his attack around Youssef En-Nesyri and cut Nigerian striker George Ilenikhena from the squad altogether for the opener against Al-Khaleej.

Al-Ittihad close out the first round of the league at Al-Inma Stadium in Jeddah today, a prime slot and a clear stage for Wissing’s ideas. His team sheet underlined exactly where his trust lies.

En-Nesyri started as the focal point, a classic No. 9. On either side of him, pace and direct running: Moussa Diaby on one flank, Steven Bergwijn on the other. It was a front three picked to stretch Al-Khaleej and pin them deep.

The real shock sat outside the stadium plans. Ilenikhena, who had come off the bench in Tuesday’s 4–1 win over Al-Jazira of the UAE in the AFC Champions League Elite play-off qualifier, did not even make the matchday list. From contributing in continental action to watching the league opener from afar – the drop was brutal and unmistakable.

He was not alone. Serbian defender Jan-Carlo Simić, a starter against Al-Jazira, also lost his place in the squad. Wissing turned instead to Ahmed Al-Julaidan at right-back, restoring him to a back line that also featured Faris Abdi on the left and the central pairing of Danilo Pereira and Stefan Keller.

If the back four shifted, the middle of the pitch did not budge. Wissing kept faith with the same midfield that controlled proceedings in midweek: Farha Al-Shamrani, Dion Lopy and Houssem Aouar all retained their spots, tasked again with dictating tempo and feeding that revamped front three.

The message was clear before a ball was kicked: reputations and recent cameos would not guarantee minutes under Wissing. The German has nailed his colours to En-Nesyri for now. How long that hierarchy holds could shape Al-Ittihad’s season.