(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Hosts aim to get their campaign back on track against Bahrain Saudi Arabia’s Omar Hawsawi and his teammate Saud Khariri try to tackle Qatar’s Abdulqadir Ilyas in the opening game. — AFP
Riyadh – Coach Juan Ramon Lopez Caro has called on the Saudi people and media to get behind the boys in green as the tournament hosts bid to get their Gulf Cup campaign back on track against Bahrain on Sunday evening (Kick-off: 9:15pm).
The Saudis were held by Qatar 1-1 in their opening outing here on Thursday and they return to the King Fahad International Stadium tonight looking to take an important step towards the semi-finals.
Their chances of doing exactly that will unquestionably be bolstered if they’re stirred on by a fervent home crowd and Caro has issued a rallying cry to the Saudi public and press.
“The players and I must ask the public and the media for their support if we really are to aspire and become a strong country in football terms” Caro said.
“I’m not in the slightest bit objectionable to personal criticism but we must leave our outside interests to one side at the moment and help and support the players.
“They know me very well. They’ve spent a long time with me they know about my character and they know very well that I’ll defend them until my last day in Saudi Arabia.”
Saudi midfielder Taiseer Al Jassam added: “I honestly hope that the media and fans understand just how influential they’ve been over many years in their support of the players and I.
“We don’t like the situation. It’s not good but we are trying to do our best to please them.”
Bahrain’s boss Adnan Hamad still believes the Saudis remain among three strong contenders for the tournament title along with Qatar and the UAE while his native Iraq cannot entirely be ruled out of the reckoning either.
However he feels “they’ve lost their identity in this last period” and the Saudi Arabian FA is “aware of the problem” that is “difficult to overcome.”
Their affairs nevertheless are understandably not as pressing a priority for him as Bahrain’s and he is confident of progression if they emerge victorious in one of their last two pool-phase encounters.
“We have a real chance to qualify” Hamad commented. “If we win one of our two matches (against Saudi Arabia or Qatar) it’s possible that will be enough to see us qualify.”
Meanwhile in the earlier kick-off (6:45pm) Yemen meet Qatar looking to bridge a mammoth 90 places (88th to 178th) between them in the Fifa World Rankings.
“If we are to succeed we need to think about our game” Yemen’s Czech coach Miroslav Soukup stated.
“We will focus solely on our performance and not about Qatar because I want my players to think only of themselves and how best to get a good result from the game.”
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