Jesus comments on Saudi Arabia's exit from the Arab Cup and the upcoming match against Al-Akhdoud

Al-Nassr's Portuguese coach, Jorge Jesus, expressed his deep disappointment and frustration at the Saudi national football team's failure to reach the final of the Arab Cup and win the title. The Portuguese coach emphasized that the Saudi team had shown remarkable improvement recently and possessed all the technical qualities necessary to compete in the final stages and seriously contend for the gold.

Jesus's comments come at a time when attention is focused on the resumption of the Saudi Professional League, with the Arab Cup being one of the important regional tournaments that the Saudi sports community is counting on to gauge the national team's readiness for upcoming international competitions. The Saudi national team has always been a formidable force in Arab and Gulf tournaments, so an early exit or failure to reach the final would undoubtedly cast a shadow over the sporting world.

Preparing for the Battle of the Trench

Speaking about the return to domestic competitions, Jesus addressed the difficulty of the upcoming match against Al-Akhdoud on Saturday, the 11th round of the Roshan League, during the pre-match press conference. He said, "The break was for the national team's participation in the Arab Championship, and their failure to qualify was personally disappointing for me, but now we must focus on the league." He pointed out that Al-Akhdoud has talented players and will enter the match with the ambition to win and escape the relegation zone, making the game complex and requiring extreme caution.

Jesus added, analyzing the technical aspect: “Portuguese training schools are known worldwide for their high defensive and offensive organization, and facing a team led by a Portuguese technical staff means that we will be facing a tactically disciplined opponent throughout the 90 minutes, which requires Al-Nasr players to have the highest levels of focus.”.

January's challenges and star injuries

Regarding the pressure of the schedule, the Al-Nasr coach explained that January represents the bottleneck in the sports season due to the succession of matches after the break, noting that the team feels as if it is starting the season all over again, which imposes great physical and mental challenges on the players to quickly regain the rhythm of the matches.

Regarding absences and medical readiness, Jesus revealed the status of the injured players, saying, "Unfortunately, Ayman Yahya returned from his participation with the Saudi national team with an injury, and we are monitoring his condition." As for stars Pity Martinez and Cristiano Ronaldo, the coach emphasized the need to implement a rotation policy and rest some players to maintain their physical fitness and avoid muscle fatigue given the expected fixture congestion.

Jesus concluded his remarks with an optimistic note about the defensive options, confirming that defender Mohamed Simakan will be available to participate after a week, stressing that the next stage requires intelligence in choosing the most suitable lineup for each match to ensure collecting points and continuing to compete for the top spot in the league.