Al-Ahli have been handed a major boost ahead of Monday's anticipated clash with Qatar's Al-Gharafa in the third round of the AFC Champions League Elite. Senegalese goalkeeper Edouard Mendy and Brazilian attacking winger Wenderson Galeno both returned to training after a spell on the sidelines through injury.
Sources close to "Al-Riyadiah" newspaper report that the pair took part in Sunday's full session after completing their treatment and rehabilitation programmes, edging them closer to a return for the upcoming Asian test.
Fitness is one thing, selection another. Dutch coach Marino Pusic has yet to settle on whether Mendy and Galeno will start against Al-Gharafa, and he is expected to decide their final status at the technical meeting hours before kick-off, shaping his call around his needs and plans for the match.
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The injury news was not all good, though. Turkish defender Merih Demiral, Saleh Abu Al-Shamat and Nayef Masoud will all stay sidelined, the trio still working through their treatment and rehabilitation programmes and not yet fully ready to return.
Demiral is nursing an injury to the foot joint picked up in training before the clash against Al-Khaleej last Saturday, in the 11th round of the Saudi Roshn League. A shoulder joint injury, meanwhile, has kept Saleh Abu Al-Shamat out of the last two matches against Al-Feiha and Al-Khaleej.
Nayef Masoud continues to recover from an injury to the foot joint that has already denied him four league matches, along with the continental clash against the UAE's Al-Wasl. He too misses out against the Qatari side.
The Jeddah side wrapped up their preparations with a final session, the technical staff putting the finishing touches to the technical and tactical details. All eyes remain on the returning duo, with a positive result key to strengthening Al-Ahli's standing in the Asian competition.
Al-Ahli sit fifth in the Western group on four points, having opened with a 1-1 draw against Uzbekistan's Pakhtakor before beating the UAE's Al-Wasl 3-1. Al-Gharafa, by contrast, arrive under serious pressure. They have lost both their opening fixtures, 2-1 to Al-Hilal and by the same score against Iran's Esteghlal, leaving them pointless.