Why Talal Haji's move from Al Ittihad to Al Riyadh is a win for all parties | OneFootball

The excitement of youth is a feature of football the world over, whether it’s Lamine Yamal lighting up the Supercopa de Espana in Jeddah with Barcelona or an unknown teenager emerging from the favelas in Brazil.

There’s a child-like joy they bring, and the feeling for fans of whatever club it may be that is universal; a mix of pride at seeing one of their own make the grade, and excitement at the potential contained within their feet.

While Lamal was lighting up King Abdullah Sports City Stadium this past week for Barcelona, rewind 12 months and it was a teenager of Jeddah’s own, from its streets, that was generating excitement in Saudi Arabia’s second-largest city. Talal Haji burst onto the scene last year, smashing record after record as he announced himself as a star of the future for Al Ittihad.

First called up to the senior squad in September 2023 when aged only 15, he became the youngest player in Roshn Saudi League history when he made his senior debut at 16 years and five days after coming off the bench against Al Fateh in the same month.

A surprise inclusion in the Saudi Arabia national team squad for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup followed, making Haji the youngest player in Saudi history to feature for the Green Falcons at the continent’s premier tournament

While, a mere few months later, in March last year, the precocious forward became the youngest scorer in RSL history with an acrobatic effort against Al Okhdood. Better, though, was yet to come.

In May, a man-of-the-match performance came against Damac, with a goal and two assists, to put Haji’s name up in lights. He added an assist in the final game of the 2023-24 season to conclude the campaign with two goals and three assists from 293 minutes of football. Not bad, you’d say, for a 16-year-old.

With an eye cast forward to the FIFA World Cup 2034 on home soil, when Haji will be 27 and conceivably entering the peak of his powers, it’s easy to understand why the powerfully-built teenager garnered so much hype.

Recently, he has been both named by GOAL in their NXGN list of 20 wonderkids to watch, while UK publication The Guardian included Haji in their annual Next Generation list as a star of the future.

However, with Laurent Blanc’s arrival at Al Ittihad, and fresh recruits added in the off-season, opportunities for Haji have been limited this term, to the point where he has yet to feature at all.

Not wanting to lose the momentum generated at the tail end of last season, the January transfer window brought with it new opportunity, and last week’s agreed six-month loan spell with Al Riyadh presents as a win-win-win for all three parties.

Naturally, it is a great move first and foremost for Haji himself. Having been starved of game-time this campaign, he moves to a club where opportunities should be more forthcoming.

In fact, no sooner had he been announced to great fanfare by Al Riyadh, he was in their match-day squad for their 2-2 draw with Al Khaleej, coming off the bench in the 83rd minute to see his first match minutes of the season.

Time in the pitch is, of course, what Haji needs for his development, and the signs are already promising in that regard.

What is also important for his development is the fact he’ll get to work under former French international Sabri Lamouchi, provided the chance to learn from his decades of experience in the game. For Al Ittihad, who without doubt still see Haji as a future star, it was important he went to work with a coach they trust, one that could continue to nurture his immense talent.

Lamouchi and Al Ittihad manager, Laurent Blanc, have known each other for three decades. They first played together in the historic Burgundy region in France, southwest of Paris, for AJ Auxerre in the mid-1990s, helping the unheralded club to the French top-flight title in 1995-96.

During the next few years, the two would also share a changing room at international level for France, even playing together for their nation team at Euro 1996. It sparked a friendship that would span three decades before both finding themselves where they are today, as rival managers in the RSL.

You would imagine Blanc and Lamouchi have spoken at length about Haji’s talent, and it’s in both of their interests to ensure the loan move is a success.

Looking at Al Riyadh in particular, Haji adds another dimension to their attack, one that hasn’t fully fired this season. Fourteen matches in, they have scored the fewest goals of any side in the top seven, and any side - except Al Taawoun - in the top 10.

Having recruited heavily in the summer transfer window as they try to rediscover their glory days, Al Riyadh’s first half of the season has been solid.

They sit seventh in the table after the weekend’s draw with Al Khaleej, with six wins, four draws and four losses. It’s far from the worst record in the league, but they’ll see some of the teams a few points ahead - like Al Ahli and Al Shabab - and think they are eminently gettable in the back half of the season.

That is the context in which Haji swaps the seaside life in Jeddah, for the hustle and bustle of Riyadh, looking to continue to chart his path forward in the game.

After captured so much attention for his highlight-reel finish to last season, the young-but-prodigious loanee be hoping the move to Al Riyadh brings about even more success this term.