JEDDAH, 28 May 2003 — The King Fahd Cup Soccer Tournament final between Al-Ittihad and Al-Ahli promises to be a battle-royale, especially with Ahli coming into their own in the second phase of the round-robin with clinical victories that enabled them to set the showdown with Ittihad, who have been showing exceptional form in the event.
Ittihad, rested and confident, had been on a roll in the second round of the tournament and pulled away from the pack well ahead of time and were sitting pretty at the top for an easy ride into the round-robin phase. This saw them wait for the winner from the three others who had made the grade and after a step-ladder clash, Ahli defeated Al-Qadisiya, who had earlier overcome Al-Nasr, to earn the right to play Ittihad.
Today at the King Fahd Stadium, the two teams will be raring to put their best foot forward, with many a fans — of both the teams — making the trip to Riyadh to cheer on their teams. With little to choose between the two dominant Jeddah outfits, the attack that finishes cleanly will hold the key to the final.
The form of Hasan Al-Yami, Abu Bakr Camarra and Hamza Idrees will be crucial for Ittihad against a veritable strong Ahli defense marshaled by Tunisian International Khaled Badra. Similarly the speed of Talal Al-Meshal, Bushayeb Limbarki and Muhammad Barakat could pose some problems to the Ittihad defense, in which Bassem Al-Yami and Hamad Al-Munteshri would be the men to beat. Ittihad, however, late yesterday said that Hasan Al-Yami could be a doubtful starter following an injury during training, and this could give the Ahli team a slight edge.
What will, in all likelihood, take the match to the wire will be the form of the rival goalkeepers. Ittihad’s Mabrouk Zayed has been playing superbly and has come to his side’s rescue time and again, while Ahli’s Tayseer Al-Nitef too has shown exceptional reflexes beneath the Ahli bar as he has stood firm against a variety of attacks. The records of both the goalkeepers in the tournament speaks for itself. During the whole event, Mabrouk let in 24 goals, while Tayseer had 23 goals scored against him.
That the match will be close can be gauged by the striking precision of both the teams. Ittihad in its run to the finale struck 53 goals, while Ahli shot 54. Both the teams’ midfield has come good and it is this protracted struggle of the midfielders that could tilt the scale their team’s way.
Ittihad’s new coach Khaled Al-Guruni was confident that his team would be the one to hold aloft the trophy tonight. “I saw the hunger in my players’ eyes, and the confidence to win. This has made me confident that my side will win the final,” he said. Al-Guruni was appointed coach after Ittihad had qualified for the final. This will be his first major test.
Ahli’s Assistant Coach Yusuf Ambar said: “Ahli has shown great performance and fine resilience this season and this will pay off by us getting the trophy. Out team is ready for the final, and I know it will not be easy for both teams, and though I’m not overconfident, I think it is going to be Ahli’s day.”
For those statistically inclined, Ittihad registered 26 points and had 8 wins, two draws and one loss, while Ahli took 17 from 5 wins, two draws and 4 losses in the first round. Ahli was the better team in the second phase, collecting 30 points from 10 wins and one draw. Ittihad managed 23 points from 7 wins, two draws and two losses. Ittihad have won the title five times prior to this final: 1402 against Al-Shabab 1-0 in Riyadh, 1417 against Al-Hilal 2-0, 1419 and 1420 against Al-Ahli 1-0 and 2-1, and 1421 against Al-Nasr 1-0. Ittihad were given the trophy after its hat trick of wins in 1419, 1420, and 1421. Ittihad has also won the Crown Prince Cup six times.
Ahli too has many achievements to show in their trophy case. Ahli has won the King’s Cup 11 times and is the only team to reach that number. Ahli won in 1382 against Riyadh, 1385 against Ittifaq, 1389 against Al-Shabab, 1390 against Al-Wehda, 1392, 1393 against Al-Nasr, 1397 against Al-Hilal, 1398 against Al-Riyadh, 1399 against Al-Ittihad and 1403 against Ittifaq. Ahli is the first team to win the Crown Prince Cup in 1377 against Riyadh, 1390 against Al-Wehda, 1418 against Riyadh and 1422 against Ittihad. In the last 67 years, both teams have met 127 times in different competitions. Ittihad has won 44 times against Ahli, which has won 42 times. Both teams have drawn 40 games. Ittihad biggest win against Ahli is 8-2 in 1386 in King’s Cup and 7-0 in the same tournament in 1379. The biggest result achieved by Ahli against Ittihad is 5-0 in 1396 and 5-1 in 1385.
