Yasser Al-Qahtani

Yasser Saeed Mosleh Abdulrahman Al-Qahtani (; born 10 October 1982) is a Saudi Arabian former footballer who played as a forward for Al-Hilal FC in the Saudi Professional League. He was also captain of the Saudi Arabia national team.

Club career In 2005, Al-Qahtani moved to Al-Hilal from Al-Qadisiyah for a reported £2.5 million transfer fee.

After leading Saudi Arabia to the finals of the 2007 AFC Asian Cup as one of the tournament's top scorers, Al-Qahtani won the Asian Footballer of the Year award. He went on trial at Manchester City in December.

In 2011, struggling for form following injuries and having lost his place in the Al-Hilal starting lineup, Al-Qahtani joined United Arab Emirates club Al Ain on a season-long loan. There he contributed to the club's first league title since 2004, scoring 7 goals in 15 league appearances, and 12 goals in a total of 26 games across all competitions. Having regained his form, he returned to Al-Hilal after the loan spell ended.

Coached by Sami Al-Jaber and Laurențiu Reghecampf, Al-Qahtani reached the finals of the 2014 AFC Champions League with Al-Hilal where his team finished runners up losing to Western Sydney Wanderers in the final 1–0 on aggregate.

International career

2006 World Cup Al-Qahtani played in the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany where he scored a goal against Tunisia.

2007 Asian Cup At the 2007 AFC Asian Cup, Saudi Arabia reached the final under new Brazilian coach dos Anjos with Al-Qahtani becoming the tournament's top scorer.

2010 World Cup qualification campaign In the final stages of the 2010 World Cup qualification, Al-Qahtani was injured in the game against Uzbekistan and upon his return from injury remained out form due to lack of playing time at Al-Hilal. Saudi Arabia missed qualification to the World Cup failing to beat North Korea at home in Riyadh in the decisive last game with the match ending goalless.

Career statistics

Club

International

International goals Scores and results list Saudi Arabia's goal tally first. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition 1. 26 December 2002 Al Kuwait Sports Club Stadium, Kuwait City 2–2 2002 Arab Nations Cup 2. 3. 8 October 2003 Prince Abdullah al-Faisal Stadium, Jeddah 2004 AFC Asian Cup qualification 4. 6 January 2004 Kazma SC Stadium, Kuwait City 16th Arabian Gulf Cup 5. 8 January 2004 Kazma SC Stadium, Kuwait City 2–0 16th Arabian Gulf Cup 6. 7. 18 February 2004 King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification 8. 18 July 2004 Sichuan Longquanyi Stadium, Chengdu 2–2 2004 AFC Asian Cup 9. 10. 1 September 2004 King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh Friendly 11. 8 September 2004 Olympic Stadium, Ashgabat 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification 12. 12 October 2004 Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, Jakarta 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification 13. 11 December 2004 Ahmed bin Ali Stadium, Doha 17th Arabian Gulf Cup 14. 25 March 2005 Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium, Dammam 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification 15. 14 February 2006 Prince Abdullah al-Faisal Stadium, Jeddah Friendly 16. 14 June 2006 Allianz Arena, Munich 2006 FIFA World Cup 17. 9 August 2006 Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium, Dammam 1–0 Friendly 18. 16 August 2006 Salt Lake Stadium, Calcutta 3–0 2007 AFC Asian Cup qualification 19. 20. 21. 11 October 2006 Sapporo Dome, Sapporo 2007 AFC Asian Cup qualification 22. 8 January 2007 Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium, Dammam 3–0 Friendly 23. 24. 18 January 2007 Al-Nahyan Stadium, Abu Dhabi 2–1 18th Arabian Gulf Cup 25. 26. 24 January 2007 Al-Nahyan Stadium, Abu Dhabi 18th Arabian Gulf Cup 27. 11 July 2007 Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, Jakarta 2007 AFC Asian Cup 28. 14 July 2007 Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, Jakarta 2007 AFC Asian Cup 29. 22 July 2007 Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, Jakarta 2007 AFC Asian Cup 30. 25 July 2007 Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi 2007 AFC Asian Cup 31. 11 September 2007 King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh 5–0 Friendly 32. 33. 9 November 2007 Prince Abdullah al-Faisal Stadium, Jeddah Friendly 34. 25 November 2007 Cairo International Stadium, Cairo 2007 Pan Arab Games 35. 30 January 2008 King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh Friendly 36. 6 February 2008 King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification 37. 2 June 2008 King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh 4–1 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification 38. 39. 8 January 2009 Royal Oman Police Stadium, Muscat 19th Arabian Gulf Cup 40. 11 January 2009 Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Muscat 19th Arabian Gulf Cup 41. 4 June 2009 TEDA Football Stadium, Tianjin Friendly 42. 9 January 2013 Khalifa Sports City Stadium, Isa Town 21st Arabian Gulf Cup

Honours