Saudi Arabia set stall in Spain as World Cup preparations go up a gear

LONDON: The Saudi Arabia Football Federation has confirmed the national team’s plans for this month’s penultimate World Cup preparation camp.
Coach Juan Antonio Pizzi has once more taken his squad to Spain for three weeks, but while they are again training at the Marbella Football Center, neither of the two scheduled friendly matches will be played at the city’s Estadio de Marbella after Pizzi complained about the quality of the pitch following his side’s 1-1 draw with Ukraine there in March.
Instead, the Green Falcons will face Algeria at the 25,000-seat Estadio Ramón de Carranzain Cadiz on May 9, before switching to Seville for a second match, against Greece on May 15 at the 60,000-seat Estadio Olimpico. Both matches will kick off at 7.30 p.m. local time (8.30 p.m. Makkah).
All 32 national teams that will contest this summer’s showpiece in Russia must name provisional squads by May 14, one month before the World Cup kicks off in Moscow. The scheduling means the Argentinian manager will only have the Algeria friendly to assess his fringe players in match conditions before deciding whether they will make the release list, which can include no more than 35 names.
Haroun Kamara, a 20-year-old striker with Al-Qadisiyah, was the surprise selection for this month’s camp having made only seven league appearances. While he will be expected to be given a run-out against Algeria, the likes of Mukhtar Ali and Faris Abdi are unlikely to make even the long list, having been overlooked once again for this month’s prep camp. Ali, born in Jeddah to Somalian parents and having represented England at under-16 and U17 level, had told Arab News just last month that he retained the hope of making the final cut.
While the opposition teams were never in doubt, there were questions surrounding where next week’s matches would be played. The March friendly against Ukraine in Marbella was played in unseasonably cold and wet weather and proved a point of frustration for Pizzi, who had hoped to replicate the warm conditions expected on June 14 for his side’s World Cup curtain-raiser against Russia in Moscow. Instead, a sodden pitch made for difficult analysis for the Argentine and his staff.
Although the climate has since improved in the region, Pizzi requested a switch of venues, leading to the Algeria game being moved instead in Cadiz, the port city located 180km to the west of Marbella.
With the two friendlies being played outside of FIFA’s international match calendar, Saudi Arabia’s three Spain-based players — Salem Al-Dawsari, Fahad Al-Muwallad, and Yahya Al-Shehri — will not be involved because of domestic commitments. Meanwhile, Algeria, who have not qualified for the World Cup, will also field an under-strength team as Leicester’s Riyad Mahrez and Newcastle’s Islam Slimani are both due to play in the Premier League on the same day.
After this month’s double-header, Pizzi will have just two more games before he must submit his final squad. The list of 23 players should be with FIFA by June 4 at the latest, meaning the May 28 friendly with Italy in Switzerland and warm-up match with Peru in Vienna on June 3 will be crucial. On June 8, Saudi will also face the world champions Germany in Leverkusen —  less than one week before they walk out for the opening match against the hosts at Luzhniki Stadium.