5 things we learned from Roberto Mancini’s start with Saudi national team

On Tuesday, Saudi Arabia lost 1-0 to South Korea, following a 3-1 defeat to Costa Rica four days earlier. In Newcastle, a first-half header from Cho Gue-song proved to be the difference between the two Asian powerhouses.

Here are five things we learned from the first two games under new boss Roberto Mancini.

Not a great start but …

Whatever the performances and whatever the spin put on it all, for a new national team coach to lose his first two games is far from an ideal start. At this stage the performances are more important than the result but Mancini, who was appointed last month, will not want the media and fans talking about the lack of wins for too much longer.

In some ways, the selection of opposition was not the best. Costa Rica and South Korea both present solid tests but are not the kind of world-beating teams that fans back in Riyadh, Jeddah and elsewhere would expect their side to lose to.

With hindsight, perhaps it would have been better to have one game against weaker opposition that Saudi Arabia could have beaten comfortably. It may not have been the most serious test but would have given Mancini the chance to get his first win out of the way.

Midfield improved but lacks cutting edge

After struggling to contain a talented Costa Rica team on Friday with Jewison Bennette, who plays his club football in nearby Sunderland, causing many problems, there was more control in the middle on Tuesday.

Mohamed Kanno was energetic and at times, along with Nasser Al-Dawsari and Abdullah Al-Khaibari, the Green Falcons looked good in the first half and asked questions of the Koreans. In the end it was a defensive mistake that allowed the Taeguk Warriors to take the lead, but there were chances created.

The team lacked a cutting edge in attack and needed one of the strikers to step forward and really stake a claim for the starting spot. Firas Al-Buraikan was not able to do so in the first game and missed the second to give Abdullah Al-Hamdan a chance. The Al-Hilal man was not able to show Mancini that he should be the main striker.

Star power making a difference

It should be remembered that to play in England is not a home game for Saudi Arabia. It is a shorter and more familiar journey for a number of Korean players who are based in Europe and the same can be said for Costa Rica.

While the league in Saudi Arabia is improving all the time with the world-class players that have been signed in recent months, the best teams in Asia have a growing number of players in Europe compared to none in the ranks of the Green Falcons.

Korean defender Kim Min-jae has improved leaps and bounds since leaving his homeland for China and Turkey before helping Napoli to the Italian title, joining Bayern Munich in the summer and being nominated for the FIFA Ballon D’or.

He has become one of the world’ best center backs. The experience and challenges gained from playing overseas really help the development of players on and off the pitch. It is something that would benefit Saudi Arabia’s stars.

Al-Owais stakes his claim

It is not easy being a Saudi Arabian goalkeeper as there are so many talented showstoppers in the league from overseas. It is also not easy for the national team coach as options are limited in this position.

In the game against Costa Rica, the gloves belonged to Nawaf Al-Aqidi who despite conceding three goals did not do a bad job. The Al-Nassr keeper was not given the nod against Son Heung-min and the rest as Mancini selected Mohammed Al-Owais for the second game.

The Al-Hilal goalkeeper had a fine game despite having played zero minutes in the league this season. It is not an ideal situation but one that the new coach will increasingly face. Al-Owais played well against South Korea and made a number of saves to show that he is still a top-class No. 1. It was an impressive 90 minutes and while Yassine Bounou is now the No. 1 at Al-Hilal, there is still plenty of talent in the country.

Still time to improve but time for a win

The win over Argentina at the World Cup was thrilling but there has not been much for Saudi fans to cheer about since then. If the Gulf Cup is included, and perhaps it should not be as the Green Falcons took a young side to that tournament, then the team has now clocked up six defeats in a row.

There is a lot of leeway given to a new coach and under Mancini it is two losses from two and he has learned a lot about his players. The Italian is respected as a top-level coach but nobody wants his run of defeats to stretch to seven or even eight when Saudi Arabia meet Nigeria and Mali next month. He spoke of improvements in October and that is expected but it is also time to stop the run of defeats before qualification for the World Cup starts in November and then the Asian Cup in January. It is not just improvements that are needed but a win.