Sultan Al-Ghannam Nears Return to Al-Nassr After Injury Recovery
Sultan Al-Ghannam is almost back. After months of silence, surgery, and lonely work in the gym, Al-Nassr’s flying right-back has entered the final stretch of his recovery from a cruciate ligament injury, and the club are counting down the weeks.
Under the supervision of Al-Nassr’s doctor in Riyadh, Al-Ghannam is now completing the last phase of his rehabilitation, having resumed training on 13 November. The medical outlook is clear: if everything continues on track, he is expected to be fully ready to play again in January.
For a player whose game is built on intensity and constant running up and down that right flank, reaching this stage is no small milestone.
The Road Back
The road back started in Doha last June. After tearing his anterior cruciate ligament, Al-Ghannam underwent surgery at the renowned Aspetar centre in the Qatari capital, with Dr Khalid Al-Khalifi performing the operation. The defender then stayed in Doha to complete the first and second phases of his rehabilitation programme, rebuilding strength and stability before returning to Saudi Arabia to finish the job.
Injury Impact
The injury came on one of the biggest nights of his career. On 16 May, in the final of the AFC Champions League 2 at Al-Awwal Park in Riyadh, Al-Ghannam went down against Japan’s Gamba Osaka. He was forced off for treatment, then returned to try to push through the pain and see out the game, but the night ended in disappointment as the Japanese side claimed a 1-0 win and lifted the trophy.
The personal cost for Al-Ghannam was even heavier: a long spell on the sidelines, watching his teammates from a distance.
Looking Ahead
His looming comeback now feels like a major reinforcement for Al-Nassr. Since arriving from Al-Faisaly in the summer of 2018, Al-Ghannam has grown into one of the team’s pillars, combining defensive reliability with relentless attacking support on the overlap. The club’s hierarchy underlined his importance in October 2023, handing him a new contract that keeps him tied to Al-Nassr until 2028.
That deal spoke volumes. It was a statement that, injury or not, the club sees him as part of its core for years to come.
Soon, the wait should be over. If the final weeks of his rehabilitation go to plan, Al-Nassr will regain not just a right-back, but one of the leaders of their modern era—just in time for the decisive phase of the season.
