Rodgers Revolution: Why Al Qadsiah will continue to rise with top tactician | OneFootball

The 2026-27 Roshn Saudi League season stands to be a significant one for Al Qadsiah.

After emerging for a debut campaign in the Roshn Saudi League ahead of the 2024-25 season, the Al Khobar club have transformed, both off the pitch and on it, into a domestic powerhouse.

That remodelling went into overdrive last December with the arrival of Brendan Rodgers; a signal of intent from the Eastern Province outfit.

That’s right: Al Qadsiah weren’t here merely to make up the numbers. And it paid off, as Rodgers ensured his new side concluded the 2025-26 RSL as one of the most in-form teams in the Saudi Arabian top flight.

Rightfully, Al Qadsiah can now look ahead to next season, with a fresh three-year contract for 2025-26 RSL golden boot winner Julian Quinones and a move into the brand new, state-of-the-art Aramco Stadium, as one in which they can really make their presence felt.

It also marks the first full season in charge for Rodgers and, if how they ended last term under the Northern Irishman is any indication, the rest of the competition has been put on notice.

Rodgers was installed after nine RSL games last season, when he promptly promised to bring with him his trademark brand of high-intensity attacking football.

"We want to finish the season as high as we possibly can," the former Celtic and Liverpool manager said upon his arrival in the Kingdom. "But also playing our football. The attacking football is obviously very important for us. But we want to win and we want to win in a really attacking style."

While, on paper, Al Qadsiah improved only in one position on the table, finishing fourth after sitting fifth when Rodgers landed on the east coast, consider that mission accomplished.

In 25 RSL matches in charge, Rodgers experienced a solitary defeat - a 3-2 loss in the Eastern Derby to Al Ettifaq. Before that came an unbeaten run of 17 games, including wins against Al Nassr, Al Ahli and Al Ittihad.

There was also the 2-2 draw with Al Hilal, when Al Qadsiah were robbed of victory once Simone Inzaghi’s side equalised in the dying minutes.

As well, no team scored more than Al Qadsiah since the new manager's arrival (67 goals), while two other metrics illustrate how successful the "Rodgers revolution" was.

No club earned a greater percentage of their overall points after Rodgers' appointment, at 78 percent. By comparison, in the same period, Al Nassr gleaned 69% of their 2025-26 tally and Al Hilal 73%. Ultimately, they represented the top two teams in the country.

Secondly, no club saw a greater improvement in their points-per-game average during that time. Before Rodgers, Al Qadsiah were averaging 1.89 points per game, by far the lowest of the top five. By season’s end, that had risen to 2.40 - an improvement of 0.51.

Of the top five in that spell, only Al Ahli (+0.37) and Al Hilal (+0.33) also improved their points-per-game ratio.

Now take into consideration that Quinones locked away on a new deal through to 2029 - a major piece of business when a fine 2026 FIFA World Cup with hosts Mexico could pique interest - and that fresh extensions were agreed last week announced for supreme Saudi defenders Jehad Thikri and Mohammed Abu Al Shamat.

And then that recently anointed 2025-26 Saudi Player of the Season Musab Al Juwayr should only get better working with Rodgers. So it’s little wonder the talented tactician is so bullish about his side’s prospects.

"The last five months have been so enjoyable," Rodgers reflected after Al Qadisah’s 5-1 triumph on the final day at Al Ittihad. When I look at the scoreline tonight on 79 minutes, we’re still pressing, still running, trying to score goals and playing with all the principles that we have tried to bring to this team.

"So, the energy and the support that this team has given me since I’ve come in... to come to a club like Al Ittihad and make that scoreline, it gives us a great foundation and base for next season.

"So, [I’m] proud for every player, proud for all our staff and clearly our supporters, and I’m already looking forward to next season and to challenge for trophies."

For sure, Rodgers and Al Qadsiah appear a perfect match.

"I can only look back since I’ve been here," Rodgers continued. "Obviously, my job was to convince the players how we want to play and they deserve a huge amount of credit, because I ask a lot of them.

"They have an obligation to run and to work, and they have done that in every game. The only game we lost we had a red card, and we still should’ve got something from the game.

"But we can still improve and we’ll look to do that in the summer. And, hopefully, we can challenge and have a full season in [all] the competitions to have even more success next year."

With the Rodgers revamp well and truly in motion, Al Qadsiah are clearly a club on the up.