- Almost 80,000 fans at the Luzhniki Stadium and 250 million watching around the world saw the Green Falcons grounded in the opening game of the tournament.
- Osama Hawsawi: “Russia made the most of our errors. Once they scored the second, it was very difficult for us. They then used the space well and we were unable to put them under pressure.”
SAINT PETERSBURG: Shellshocked Saudi Arabia captain Osama Hawsawi has insisted that the team still have what it takes to qualify for the second round despite a 5-0 thrashing at the hands of Russia in Thursday’s World Cup opener.
Almost 80,000 fans at the Luzhniki Stadium and 250 million watching around the world saw the Green Falcons grounded in the opening game of the tournament — their first World Cup clash in 12 years.
Thanks to a header from Yuri Gazinsky and a smart finish from Denis Cheryshev the hosts were 2-0 up at the break and, even then, all hope of the victory had gone. Artem Dzyuba headed a third in the second half to leave Cheryshev and Aleksandr Golovin to to complete a miserable evening for Juan Antonio Pizzi’s men.
Speaking a day after the opening-day nightmare Hawsawi admitted that the game, littered with defensive mistakes, did not go to plan.
“Russia made the most of our errors,” the veteran center-back said. “Once they scored the second, it was very difficult for us. They then used the space well and we were unable to put them under pressure.”
It was a deflating experience for a team that had shown signs of improvement under Pizzi in the build-up to the tournament.
Hawsawi insisted, however, that all was not lost with two Group A games remaining. The next test comes against Uruguay in Rostov on Wednesday and then a final showdown with Egypt in Volgograd five days later.
“We still have two games to go,” Hawsawi said.
“We still control our destiny and now we have to focus everything on the next game.”
Fellow veteran Taisir Al-Jassim was sorry for the healthy contingent of Saudi Arabian fans who had made the trip to the Russian capital and for all those watching at home.
“I want to apologize to the fans,” the midfielder said.
“Russia turned up and we didn’t. We had been feeling good in the preparation period and so we really did not expect something like this to happen.”
Like Hawsawi, Al-Jassim is keen to make amends.
“In football, anything can happen. We are determined to turn this around against Uruguay and Egypt.”
The reaction at home, in the newspapers and social media, was severe. In a video posted on social media, Turki Al-Sheikh, the head of the country’s General Sports Authority, criticized the players for not putting in the necessary effort.
That video certainly eased the pressure on Pizzi. But a Saudi Arabia Football Federation executive told Arab News that while a repeat of Carlos Alberto Parreira’s sacking mid-World Cup in 1998 was not going to happen, there had to be an improvement in the next game.
“We had done everything we could to prepare for the tournament,” the official told Arab News.
“It was just one game, however, and we are expecting a much better performance against Uruguay. There is still plenty to play for.”