Saudis depart on high note after opening day ‘shame’

Saudi Arabia’s Salem Al-Dawsari celebrates after scoring their second goal – REUTERS

VOLGOGRAD, Russia (Reuters): After Saudi Arabia opened the World Cup with a “shameful” 5-0 humiliation at the hands of hosts Russia, the Asian side showed a marked improvement in their subsequent Group A matches and will go home buoyed by a surprise victory over Egypt on Monday.

The 2-1 come-from-behind win in Volgograd handed the Green Falcons a first World Cup victory in 24 years and lifted them up to third place in the group – no mean feat considering they were the second-lowest ranked side of the tournament.

That upswing was evident in Saudi coach Juan Antonio Pizzi’s own description of the tournament as the Argentine-born former Spain international described the defeat against Russia as a shock.

“We were taken by surprise,” he told reporters on Monday.

He went on to commend his players for not letting that game define their World Cup, instead emerging to play faster-paced, more attacking football in their next two fixtures.

The Saudis – the majority of whom play for domestic clubs – were noticeably improved in their second game against two-time world champions Uruguay. They lost 1-0, which restored some pride despite preventing an early elimination.

Salman Al-Faraj went on to score the team’s first goal of the tournament against Egypt after the Saudis were awarded a penalty on the stroke of halftime, before Salem Al-Dawsari slotted home the winning goal in the 95th minute.

“They will be able to tell their children, grandchildren: ‘I scored during a World Cup’,” added Pizzi, who took over as coach in November.

Once back in the kingdom, the Saudis will turn their attention to preparing for next year’s Asian Cup hosted by the United Arab Emirates.

“We will focus on the Asian Cup and I am absolutely convinced, 100 percent sure, that we will continue to improve in the next six months and that we will be able to compete at the highest level and go there to win the cup,”Pizzi said.

While it remains unclear how long Pizzi will stay on at the helm of the Saudi Arabian squad, who have had a high turnover of coaches, the former striker appeared to be taking a long view.

“We need to keep working, we need to be patient, we need to support the team. Nothing can be achieved from one day to another, everything takes time,”Pizzi said.

All of Egypt hurt by Salah injury as World Cup ends in a whimper

Nizhny Novgorod, Russia (Reuters): Talisman Mohamed Salah’s shoulder injury loomed like a dark cloud over Egypt’s World Cup campaign as they were quickly eliminated despite harbouring high hopes of making an impact on their return to the finals after a 28-year absence.

The uncertainty surrounding the Liverpool forward’s participation after he suffered shoulder ligament damage in last month’s Champions League final, had a huge impact on both preparations and team confidence coming into the tournament.

“It would have been a lot more desirable to have had him with us as we prepared,” mused coach Hector Cuper, whose meticulous pre-tournament preparations in Switzerland were skipped by Salah as the striker battled to be fit for Russia.

The ‘will he, won’t he play’ speculation extended past the opening game, where Cuper took a view that the match against Uruguay would be their toughest Group A assignment and opted not to risk Salah with two less taxing fixtures to follow.

Salah’s subsequent comeback was expected to lift Egypt’s performance up several gears and although he scored against Russia and Saudi Arabia, they lost both to limp home amid bitter disappointment and still without a win at the finals.

There had been high expectations after Egypt qualified last year, ramped up after the North Africans were handed what most fans considered a favourable draw and with Salah’s remarkable goal-scoring exploits for Liverpool adding fuel to the fire.

Since their last appearance in 1990, Egypt dominated African football in both the African Nations Cup and at club level but botched successive World Cup qualifying campaigns until reaching the finals became an obsessive aim for the country.

Veteran Argentine-born coach Cuper delivered the Holy Grail, whipping a relatively inexperienced squad into a workmanlike outfit, which served primarily to exploit Salah’s speed on the counter attack.

However, an over-reliance on the 26-year-old became all too apparent as Egyptians recoiled in horror when he landed awkwardly on his shoulder in Kiev, in a tumble whose painful outcome effectively sabotaged their hopes.

The team now heads home to an uncertain future with Cuper set to depart and the domestic game in turmoil as clubs feel the financial pinch of spectator restrictions imposed by authorities in the wake of the Arab Spring uprising some seven years ago.