BAD NAUHEIM, 12 June 2006 — The Saudi star midfielder Nawaf Al-Temyat refused to bite suggestions that the group Saudi Arabia are bracketed along with Tunisia, Spain and Ukraine are much easier compared to the 2002 group that included Germany, Ireland and Cameroon.

“In the world of World Cup there is no such a thing as a group easier than another group. We cannot compare both experiences. Each world cup has its own circumstances, “ said Al-Temyat.

Al-Temyat had played World Cup 1998 in France and 2002 in South Korea and Japan. He said, “personally I believe that this is the best preparation for World Cup and the players have jelled as a team. We had a very long training camp and this has contributed to the stability of the team as well as the great rapport among Saudi players. We hope that we will achieve the best result to qualify for the next round.”

Saudi Arabia will play the opening match against Tunisia on Wednesday. There was a report that Tunisian strikers Santos and Essam Juma were injured. Al-Temyat said that this could be a positive sign for the Saudi national team, but then again it could give the Tunisian players more energy to make up for the loss of the two strikers. He said that the substitute players must be as good and sometimes better than the original players and will make up for the gap.

Cash Incentives

The president of the General Presidency of Yourth Welfare and Saudi Football Federation, Prince Sultan ibn Fahd, announced cash incentives of SR100,000 for one win in the group stage for each player. On top of that there will be additional reward of SR300,000 to each player if the national team reached the last 16. This reward is considered the biggest in Saudi football history.

Prince Sultan attended the team’s training and expressed his trust in the Saudi team. He encouraged them give their best performance and reflect a good image of the Saudi team. The medical staff with the national team said that all players are ready for their match against Tunisia and that there was no injury reported to any player.

Special Training for Defenders

There was a significant improvement in the Saudi defense line during past training sessions. The Saudi coach Marcos Paqueta concentrated more on the defense line especially on Reda Tukar and Hamad Al-Muntasheri. The Saudi coach is training both players on clearing the ball from the penalty box.

The coach is also training the goalkeepers on catching high ball and blocking long shots. Paqueta said that there is significant improvement in defense line and there will be more improvement in the future.

German Press Provokes Saudi Players

Most German press at the Saudi camp ignore covering the training sessions or technical questions about the future matches and ask some questions that are not related. A German reporter was asking the question on how the players spend their free time and what is the best thing they like about the city.

A tabloid reporter asked Saudi players Muhammad Musad and Naif Al-Ghadi on why there are no women in Saudi stadiums and how would they play in front of women. The two players ignored the reporter and focused on the important questions asked by other press.

Saudi Team Headed to Munich

The Saudi Arabian national team are headed to Munich today for final preparation for the opening match against Tunisia on Wednesday. The Saudi team will be billeted at Hilton Munich and do training at match venue Munich stadium. Meantime, Paqueta has imposed a partial news blackout of the Saudi training camp as part of his strategy to surprise the Tunisian team.

The coach is imposing a total secrecy on the methods he is going to use during the match against Tunisia and the names of players that will participate in the opening match. Press reporters and news agencies, however, were allowed to attend 15 minutes of the training, which is specified for fitness exercise.