The start of the season could hardly have been better for Khalid Al Ghannam.
The exciting winger has been one of the standout players during the opening rounds of the 2025-26 Roshn Saudi League after returning to Al Ettifaq following a loan spell last season at Al Hilal.
By the way, the 2023-24 champions will face Al Ettifaq this weekend, which will undoubtedly give Al Ghannam a little more motivation to perform.
His three goals and two assists so far make him tied for second for goal contributions in the RSL, behind only Al Nassr’s duo of Joao Felix and Kingsley Coman (both have six).
However, Al Ghannam is ahead of superstars such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Alexandre Lacazette and even his compatriot, and now once again the reigning AFC Asian Player of the Year, Salem Al Dawsari.
This is proof, if any were needed, of what a new beginning can bring. Not that Al Ettifaq necessarily represents a brand new start, given that Al Ghannam signed for the club in January 2024 and spent the second half of the 2023-24 campaign there, under the guidance of Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard.
But after enjoying a largely unsuccessful loan spell with Al Hilal – 11 RSL appearances, all as a substitute – his return to Dammam comes at exactly the right time.
Hailing from the Eastern Province, the 24-year-old was actually a product of the ‘other’ side of town: he came through the ranks of Al Qadsiah’s academy from the age of 13, eventually making his professional debut at 18.
Al Ghannam’s impressive performances have earned him great success at Al Nassr, with the youngster signing a five-year contract in January 2020. Just like at Al Ettifaq today, he has made an impressive start to life in the capital, scoring four times in his first full season.
In fact, his first two full campaigns at Al Nassr – 2020-21 and 2021-22 – were the most consistent of his career to date: Al Ghannam played 49 times in the RSL, two-thirds of which were starts. In the process, he scored seven goals.
His form was so rich that Al Ghannam was rewarded with a call-up to the Saudi Arabian senior team, making his debut in February 2022 off the bench against Japan in a crucial FIFA World Cup qualifier at the Saitama Stadium.
Although Al Ghannam ultimately missed out on making the final 23 for the World Finals in Qatar, his star was on the rise.
Unfortunately, that was as good as it got. Over the next three seasons, Al Ghannam played only 23 more RSL matches for Al Nassr, most of them coming off the bench as a substitute, with a short spell on loan at Al Fateh thrown in for good measure.
His subsequent move to Al Ettifaq, in January 2024, saw him make six appearances as a substitute to end the season – a story that repeated itself at Al Hilal last season.
For a player with Al Ghannam’s talent, it must have been frustrating not to be able to impact his club the way he wanted. But his return to Al Ettifaq made all the difference, particularly in finding a manager he knows so well in Saad Al Shehri.
Al Ghannam played for Al Shehri in the Saudi Arabia Under-23s, playing twice at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, and so there is obviously a mutual understanding between the two. And this is clearly beneficial.
Deployed primarily as a left winger, what is most instructive about Al Ghannam’s first four appearances is the efficiency of his production.
He doesn’t top Al Ettifaq’s stats for passes or touches, but ranks first for goals scored (three), assists (two) and big chances created (four). Additionally, he is second in total chances created, also known as “assists”, with four.
And all this with fewer minutes played and fewer touches of the ball than Spanish playmaker Alvaro Medran and captain Georginio Wijnaldum.
As the statistics prove, Al Ghannam did not need much of the ball to make an impact. Whether it’s the timing of his runs or his ability to be in the right place at the right time, he reads the game beautifully and therefore influences a match whenever he is given the opportunity.
Which sums up his career so far: when he was trusted and offered the opportunity to start, Al Ghannam took it. Four game weeks into the 2025-26 season, he’s doing just that again, at just the right time for former employer Al Hilal who arrives in town on Saturday.
