Khalid Al Ghannam: Al Ettifaq's electric winger with Al Hilal in sights | OneFootball

The start to the season could hardly have gone any better for Khalid Al Ghannam.

The exciting winger has been one of the standouts through the early rounds of the 2025-26 Roshn Saudi League after returning to Al Ettifaq following a loan spell last term at Al Hilal.

The 2023-24 champions, by the way, just happen to face Al Ettifaq this weekend, which no doubt will give Al Ghannam that little more motivation to perform.

His three goals and two assists thus far make him joint-second for goal contributions in the RSL, behind only the Al Nassr duo of Joao Felix and Kingsley Coman (both have six).

However, Al Ghannam sits ahead of superstars such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Alexandre Lacazette and even his compatriot, and now once more reigning AFC Asian Player of the Year, Salem Al Dawsari.

It’s proof, if any were needed, of what a fresh start can provide. Not that Al Ettifaq necessarily represented a completely new beginning, given Al Ghannam signed for the club in January 2024 and spent the second half of the 2023-24 campaign there, working under Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard.

But, having enjoyed a largely unfruitful loan with Al Hilal - 11 RSL appearances, all as substitute - his return to Dammam has come at exactly the right time.

A native of the Eastern Province, the 24-year-old was actually a product of the “other” side of town: he rose through the academy at Al Qadsiah from the age of 13, eventually making his professional debut at 18.

Al Ghannam’s impressive displays earned a big move at Al Nassr, the youngster signing a five-year deal in January 2020. Much like at Al Ettifaq now, he 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 play 49 times in the RSL, two-thirds of which he started. In the process, he scored seven goals.

So rich was his form, Al Ghannam was rewarded with a call-up to the Saudi Arabia senior side, making his bow in February 2022 off the bench against Japan in a crucial FIFA World Cup qualifier at Saitama Stadium.

While, ultimately, Al Ghannam missed the cut for the final 23-man squad for the global finals in Qatar, his was a star firmly on the rise.

Unfortunately, though, that was as good as it got. Across the next three seasons, Al Ghannam played only 23 more RSL matches for Al Nassr, most of those coming off the bench as a substitute, with a short loan stint at Al Fateh in there for good measure.

His subsequent move to Al Ettifaq, then, in January 2024 saw him make six substitute appearances to finish the season – a story that repeated at Al Hilal last term.

For a player with Al Ghannam’s talent, it must have been frustrating to not be able to impact his club the way he wished. But his return to Al Ettifaq has made all the difference, especially getting to work again with a manager he knows so well in Saad Al Shehri.

Al Ghannam featured for Al Shehri in the Saudi Arabia Under-23s, playing twice at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, and so there is evidently a mutual understanding between the two. And it’s clearly proving beneficial.

Deployed mostly as a left winger, what is most instructive about Al Ghannam’s opening four appearances is the efficiency of his output.

He doesn’t rank anywhere near the top of the stats for Al Ettifaq when it comes to passing or touches of the ball, but sits first for goals scored (three), assists (two), and big chances created (four). Also, he is second for overall chances created, otherwise known as “shot assists”, with four.

And all from fewer minutes played, and fewer touches of the ball than the likes of Spanish playmaker Alvaro Medran and captain Georginio Wijnaldum.

As the stats bear out, Al Ghannam hasn’t needed much of the ball to make an impact. Be it the timing of his runs or his ability to be in the right place at the right time, he reads the game fantastically well and therefore influences a match whenever given a chance.

Which, to this point, sums up his career: when he’s been trusted and offered the opportunity to start, Al Ghannam has taken it. Four matchweeks into the 2025-26 season, that’s exactly what he is doing again, right on cue for former employers Al Hilal coming to town on Saturday.