Experienced goalkeeper Mohamed Faisal has been cut from the national squad due to an injury.

The three goalkeepers that were given the opportunity to play in the national squad for the friendly matches against China, Kyrgyzstan and Lebanon during the upcoming international break are Maziya's Hussain Shareef, Victory's Mohamed Yameen and Odi's Mohamed Ashwan.

28-year-old Ashwan was included in the 25-man squad for the match against Philippines under former coach Mohamed Shiyaz (Mohan).

This is the first time Ashwan and Yameen have been picked for the national team under current coach István Urbányi.

As per sources, Faisal was injured during a New Radiant practice session. He injured the joint in his left knee.

Odi's Abdulla Areen is also being picked for the senior squad for the first time.

Victory's midfielder Hussain Nihan (Nihart) was also cut from the team. Victory's captain Naiz Hassan (Dhaadhu) is not in the national team either. According to coach István Urbányi, Naiz was unable to join the team due to reasons regarding family.

Victory's Hamza Mohamed (Hampe) and Maziya's forward Mohamed Ilan Imran are not in the squad due to them being injured.

New Radiant's Ethan Ibrahim Zaki is not included in the squad due to upcoming school examinations, said Urbányi.

Urbányi made Maziya captain Samooh Ali (Samuttey) the captain of the national team once more.

Samooh was left out of the squad during the 2026 Diamond Jubilee International Football Tournament due to an injury and a disciplinary matter, said Urbányi during Saturday night's press conference.

Urbányi said Samooh has learned his lesson from his mistake.

The national squad has most of their players from Maziya this time around as well, with nine Maziya players.

The match against China on Thursday will be played at the Chongqing Longxing Football Stadium. The match against Kyrgyzstan on Monday and the match against Lebanon on 1st October will be played at the Dolen Omurzakov Stadium in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.

The national team left for China last night.