Al-Nassr could be without key defenders Abdulelah Al-Amri and Mohamed Simakan for Friday’s Riyadh derby against Al-Diriyah, creating a major problem for manager Ange Postecoglou.
The two sides meet at Al-Awwal Park in Riyadh in the eighth round of the Roshn Saudi League, with Al-Nassr attempting to maintain their challenge near the top of the table.
According to Saudi newspaper Al-Riyadiya, neither Al-Amri nor Simakan is fully ready to start the match.
Al-Amri is suffering from fatigue after representing Saudi Arabia at the Gulf Cup 27. The tournament ended on Tuesday, when the Saudi national team secured the title by beating the United Arab Emirates 2-0.
Simakan, meanwhile, has only recently returned to part of full-team training. The French defender took part in portions of Wednesday’s session after recovering from a muscle strain, but has not yet been confirmed as fully fit to face Al-Diriyah.
Both players are due to undergo medical tests on Thursday, which will determine whether they are able to start Friday’s fixture.
If they are ruled out of the starting line-up, Postecoglou is expected to turn to Nader Al-Sharari alongside Spain international Inigo Martinez in central defence. The Al-Nassr manager could also name one of the club’s young players among the substitutes.
The uncertainty comes at a difficult point in the league campaign for Al-Nassr, who are third in the Saudi league standings with 16 points. Their record consists of five wins, one draw and one defeat.
They trail leaders Al-Hilal by two points and are one point behind second-placed Al-Ittihad.