4 awaited matches in the start of the second round of the group stage

Tomorrow, Sunday, the second round of the group stage of King Salman Cup for Arab Clubs 2023 in Abha and Al-Baha, which is being organized by the Union of Arab Football Associations, and hosted by the Saudi Arabian Football Federation until August 12, will start.

Moroccan team Wydad will face Al-Ahli Tripoli from Libya at 4 pm, then the Iraqi team Al-Shorta will face the Tunisian team Esperance at 6 pm in KSA time.

At 8 pm, Al-Hilal from Saudi Arabia will face the Qatari team Al Sadd, then the Saudi team Al Ittihad will face the Tunisian team Sfaxien at 10 pm.

The matches of the first round had ended in a goalless draw between Al-Sadd and Wydad, Al-Shorta’s victory over Sfaxien 1-0, a 0-0 draw between Al-Ahli Tripoli and Al-Hilal, and Al-Ittihad’s victory over Esperence 2-1.

Coaches press conferences

Press conferences were held today Saturday; to talk about the latest preparations for the start of the second round of the group stage in Abha and Taif.

Anis Al-Jarbi, the Tunisian coach of Sfaxien, stressed the importance of his team’s match against the Saudi team Al-Ittihad, indicating that they would not be affected by Hossam Al-Badri’s recent departure from the position of coach, extending his thanks to the latter for the period he spent with them, and stressing: “We will try to complete what we have done in the past few months, starting with Al-Ittihad match”.

He added: “Every coach has his own technical vision, I try to strive and for sure there will be modifications in the formation and everyone will see them in the match. We are playing on the chances of qualifying until the last breath. The task is not difficult and we are well aware of that, and each of us bears his responsibility, I spoke with the players, and, God willing, we will continue like men on the field. The task will not be easy, and we will not spare any effort in order to make the fans happy”.

For his part, Alaa Gram, the Sfaxien player, said: “Al-Ittihad includes players at the highest level, and we need great efforts to reduce their danger, but the matches are 11 players against 11, and the field does not recognize these differences, and God willing, we will play the match with all strength and achieve positive results and continue moving forward in the championship”.

Ahmed Salah, coach of the Iraqi team Al-Shorta said that he would try to appear again in a good way after winning the first match, stressing the strength of Tunisian team Esperance, despite its loss in the opening round against the Saudi team Al-Ittihad.

He added: “Our preparation differs from the previous match. We are well aware of the difficulty of the task, but we will do our best to achieve victory. Mahmoud Al-Mawas is a great professional and at a high level, and his absence is impressive, but we have good players at the same time”.

He concluded by saying: “The tournament includes distinguished players and strong clubs, and the difficulties we face are physical effort, and we tried to remove obstacles from the players and deal realistically in the first match, and today we must appear well, and in the combined tournaments the coach’s options are better”.

Manaf Younes, Al-Shorta player, said: “Our team is able to show a positive result against Esperance, and we will work to play the coach’s style and implement his instructions. We participate in order to leave a positive imprint and achieve distinguished results, we have good players and training cadres, and we will do our best to achieve victory”.

Mouin Chaabani, the Tunisian team Esperance coach, explained, saying: “The loss in the first match creates a state of pressure on any team in the second round, and in Esperance we are used to pressure matches, and God willing, we will be 100% ready for Al-Shorta match. It is a decisive match and we have no choice. There is nothing else but winning, and we will prepare optimally, on the technical and mental levels, in light of the pressure of the championship matches”.

He concluded by saying: “Esperance players are great and are not affected by the pressure of the matches or losing a round. It is true that we presented good levels in the first round, but the good level alone is not enough, and in the end we did not achieve our main goal, which is to win”.

For his part, Muhammad Faisal Abu Zureik, Esperance player, said: “We turned the page of the last match and all focus is on Al-Shorta match, and we will do our best to win and get 3 points, make the fans happy and compensate them for losing the first round”.

On the other hand, Jorge Jesus, coach of the Saudi team Al-Hilal, said that he is working with maximum energy in order to reach full readiness through training, indicating that the group is constantly adapting, pledging to present distinguished levels in front of the Qatari team Al-Sadd to reach the required form.

Regarding his new player, Malcolm, he said that he had a distinguished preparation period with the Russian team Zenit and participated in several friendly matches, pointing out that it would help him quickly adapt to the players of Al Hilal.

Ruben Neves, Al Hilal midfielder, expressed his happiness at representing one of the best teams that always strive to win titles at all levels, pledging to achieve victories, climb the podiums, and appear in the best possible way during the next stage.

Adel Ramzy, coach of the Moroccan team Wydad, confirmed his desire to come out with a positive result, noting that his team presented outstanding levels during the first match against Al Sadd, and pledged to the fans of his club to appear better in the second round.

He added, “I think that all the teams in the group have equal chances of qualifying for the next stage. My team is physically ready and we have no problem, and everyone’s condition is currently being evaluated to a greater extent before choosing the formation of the match”.

For his part, Amin Abu Al-Fateh, Wydad player, stressed his team’s readiness to compete in the second round, indicating that they will do their best to achieve victory and collect 3 points, pointing out that the absence of captain Yahya Jabrane due to suspension will not affect them.

Bruno Miguel, the coach of Qatari team Al-Sadd, said that he knows a lot about Jesus, the coach of Al-Hilal, indicating that he will play against the latter in the same way, and he is well aware of the Saudi team’s reliance on the high-pressure method.

He explained: “All teams are currently going through the preparation stage, and we are working hard to reach the highest levels of readiness. We have new elements who have prepared with us in a short period”.

For his part, Hassan Al-Aidaroos, Al-Sadd player, said that they are continuing their preparations despite the short preparation period, adding: “Only professional players can distribute their efforts and fitness, and in any case there is nothing that prevents us from achieving our desired goals”.

In turn, Tariq Jaraya, the Libyan coach of Al-Ahli Tripoli, said that his team does not think of anything other than continuing the victories during the championship competitions, pointing out that he will play every match like the finals that accept nothing but victory and nothing else.

Mohamed Nashnoush, the goalkeeper and captain of the team, said that they, as players, are ready to play the upcoming match against Wydad, and they lack success only to win the match, indicating that his fellow players work with great enthusiasm during training to achieve victory.