MANAMA: Saudi Arabia’s match against Bahrain on Thursday is “crucial” to their bid to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, coach Herve Renard said on Wednesday.
The away game will be followed by a showdown with Australia at King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah on Tuesday, as the third round of the qualifiers draws to a close.
The Saudis are sitting third in the six-team Group C, 10 points behind already qualified Japan and trailing Australia by three. The top two in the group qualify automatically for the finals, while those who finish third and fourth will fight it out with four other teams for the last three spots. At this point no outcome is certain for the Green Falcons, who are just four points ahead of bottom-of-the-group China.
Speaking at the prematch press conference in Manama, Renard said the Saudis must take maximum points from their remaining games.
“We have to win the six points in the next two matches,” the Frenchman said. “Knowing the outcome of the Australia-Japan match (on Thursday) in advance gives us an important psychological boost ahead of the Bahrain match, and it may also determine my final message to the players.”
The squad’s final preparations for the game were going well, he added, with a renewed spirit and clear determination among the players to perform at a level worthy of the team, despite the difficult task ahead.
The position they are in reflects the team’s stumbling start to this phase of the qualifiers, Renard said, but everyone is determined to restore balance to the team and win.
