Bondarenko's Exclusion Sparks Controversy at Al-Ahli

Artem Bondarenko has become the flashpoint in a growing storm at Al-Ahli – and his coach is right at the centre of it.

On the eve of the Roshn League clash with Al-Hazm at Alinma Stadium in Jeddah, Dutch coach Marino Pusic has dropped the Ukrainian midfielder from the matchday squad yet again, a move that has only intensified the anger of an already sceptical fanbase.

Saudi journalist Waleed Saeed revealed on X that Bondarenko will not be involved against Al-Hazm, with Brazilian winger Matheus Goncalves also excluded. For Bondarenko, it is a now-familiar blow.

This is the third time he has been left out of the squad entirely since joining from Shakhtar Donetsk in last summer’s transfer window. For a player brought in with clear backing from the coach, his impact has been minimal and his presence deeply divisive.

A signing the fans never wanted

Bondarenko has pulled on the Al-Ahli shirt only twice so far. He started in the 3-1 defeat to Al-Khaleej in the fourth round, then featured in the 5-0 demolition of Al-Riyadh in the fifth. Those two games tell very different stories on the pitch, but off it, the reaction barely changed.

Supporters had already voiced their opposition to the transfer before it was completed. They did not hide their frustration once he arrived either, greeting him with jeers during the win over Al-Riyadh. That night, instead of marking a fresh start, felt like a warning.

Since then, he has vanished from the team sheet.

Pusic omitted him from the squad for the 3-0 loss to Al-Hilal in the third round, then again for the 3-2 defeat to Al-Qadsiah in the sixth. Now comes a third straight exclusion against Al-Hazm, extending a run on the sidelines that looks less like rotation and more like a full-scale retreat.

Coach under fire over his own choice

All of this cuts directly to Pusic’s credibility. Bondarenko was not a boardroom signing imposed from above. The Dutchman pushed for him. He had worked with the midfielder at Shakhtar between 2023 and 2025 and clearly believed he could anchor his project in Jeddah.

Instead, that decision now hangs over him.

Every time Bondarenko’s name is missing from the squad list, the question grows louder: why fight to bring in a player the fans rejected, only to discard him when the pressure rises?

The defeats to Al-Hilal and Al-Qadsiah have already put Pusic under scrutiny for results. The Bondarenko saga adds another layer – a high-profile signing, loudly opposed by supporters, barely used on the pitch and now frozen out altogether.

As Al-Ahli walk out to face Al-Hazm in the seventh round of the Saudi Roshn League, the focus will not only be on the scoreline. It will be on a coach who bet on a familiar face from Shakhtar and now finds that choice turning into a test of how long his own authority will hold.