CADIZ: Saudi Arabia coach Juan Antonio Pizzi insists that while he has full respect for Algeria, he was not surprised by his side’s 2-0 win on Wednesday night, adding that further improvement is essential if his Green Falcons are to leave their mark at next month’s Fifa World Cup.
With the friendly not marked on the official international match calendar, the Green Falcons faced an Algeria side that consisted of only home-based players. Instead of the likes of Riyad Mahrez, Yacine Brahimi, and Islam Slimani, the African side’s coach Rabah Madjer selected a largely experimental team that had trained together for only three days.
Algeria, who reached the knock-out stages of the 2014 World Cup, were selected by Pizzi as preparation for his side’s Group A clash with Egypt on June 25. Yet while Egypt finished top of their 2018 qualifying group, Algeria slumped, failing to win a single match in six against Nigeria, Zambia and Cameroon. They were later handed three points when Nigeria were deemed to have fielded an ineligible player, but the Desert Foxes stayed rooted to the bottom of their group.
It is with this context that Pizzi, inside the Estadio Ramón de Carranza in southern Spain, conceded post-match that he had expected victory. And while goals from Salman Al-Faraj and Yahya Al-Shehri ensured the Argentine head coach left content, it could have — and should have — been more comfortable than it was.
“We are improving day after day,” Pizzi told reporters. “We have a lot of confidence in our squad, it’s a good group and each player has their own individual qualities.
“For me, whether the opposition players are first team or second choice, I don’t care. They are footballers representing their country, so it shouldn’t matter. We respect all our opponents and that, for sure, includes Algeria. Yet for me, both the level of the performance and the result is logical. Now we must continue to keep improving.”
Saudi enjoyed 63 percent possession, but they only managed two shots on target, floundering a host of chances, particularly in the second half. Salem Al-Dawsari, Mohamed Al-Sahlawi and Al-Faraj all missed decent chances, while Hattan Bahberi will be keen to forget how he failed to finish from close-range before the linesman raised his flag to call him offside.
“The first part of the game, Algeria were the better side. They had more control over the game, but when we scored the first goal, it gave us more confidence, and allowed us to play more calmly,” Pizzi added. “You saw that in the second half. We started better, played with more comfort, were able to control the game more, circulate the ball and create more chances. The domination of the game was ours, but of course we must be more clinical in front of goal.”
It could have been a different outcome had Algerian striker Abdennour Belkheir made more of an early chance gifted to him when Saeed Al-Mowallad was caught ball-watching in the penalty area. As a deep cross came in from the flank, the Al-Ahli right-back stood stationary preparing to clear, failing to notice Belkheir sneaking in to plant a firm header toward goal. Fortunately for Al-Mowallad it was off-target.
“It was a good game generally,” said Al-Mowallad, who was replaced by Mohammed Al-Burayk with five minutes remaining. “To feel what it is like to win again, for us players, is always important. It gives us more confidence and motivation to do better in the next game. Coach Pizzi has been with us for five games now and I think, while we still must improve, we are starting to see the benefits of working with him.”
Pizzi and his squad have returned to their training base in Marbella for the remainder of the week. On Sunday, they will relocate to Sevilla to prepare for another friendly match, against Greece Tuesday. By that time Pizzi will have named his provisional 35-man World Cup squad and it will be less than one month until his side’s curtain-raiser against Russia in Moscow.