In a high-stakes match held at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah, known as "The Shining Jewel," Al-Ittihad coach Cancea revealed the real reasons behind his team's heavy defeat against their traditional rival, Al-Ahli, by a score of three goals to one, in the 25th round of the Saudi Professional League (Roshan League).
Details of the confrontation and the turning point
In his post-match press conference, the coach emphasized that Al-Ittihad delivered a strong performance, particularly in the early stages. He stated, "We played a great match against a well-organized team, and we started the first half excellently." He noted that the team proved a formidable opponent despite Al-Ahli taking the lead, as Al-Ittihad managed to get back into the game and score the equalizer early in the second half.
However, Canceaão identified the pivotal moment that broke the team's back, placing a large part of the responsibility on goalkeeper Rajković, stating: "Unfortunately, there was a catastrophic mistake by goalkeeper Rajković that dashed our hopes," indicating that such individual errors in sensitive derby matches cost the team dearly and completely change the course of the game.
Psychological factors and provoking the opponent
The reasons for the loss weren't limited to technical errors; the Al-Ittihad coach also addressed the mental and psychological aspects of the match. He explained that Al-Ahli's playing style relies on disrupting the opponent's focus, saying, "Al-Ahli excels at provoking their opponents, and today we fell into their trap." This statement highlights the importance of emotional stability in derby matches, as the opponent successfully drew Al-Ittihad's players into a tense situation, causing them to lose the necessary focus on the pitch.
Praise for local refereeing
In a related context, Cancea made a remarkable statement about the refereeing performance, preferring the local referee over the foreign one in managing such major matches, as he said: “The Saudi referee behaves better than the foreign referee,” an opinion that reflects his technical viewpoint on managing the derby.
The importance and impact of the Jeddah derby
This match is of paramount importance not only because of the three points at stake, but also because the Jeddah derby is one of the oldest and fiercest derbies in the Arab world and the Middle East. This loss comes at a critical juncture in the league (round 25), as teams strive to accumulate as many points as possible to improve their positions in the Saudi Professional League standings. The league has garnered global attention thanks to attracting some of the world's biggest football stars, making every match a decisive final.
