JEDDAH: Denied an automatic World Cup spot, Saudi Arabia resumes its campaign for a fifth straight finals appearance in the showpiece event when it clashes with Gulf neighbor Bahrain on Saturday in the first leg of the Asian Zone World Cup qualifying playoff match.
The two-legged match will determine Asia’s representative to play Oceania champion New Zealand for a place in the 2010 finals in South Africa.
Saudi Arabia missed a golden opportunity to qualify from Group B after a 0-0 draw against North Korea in Riyadh on June 17.
The Kingdom needed to win that match while the North Korean team either had to win or draw to make it. While North Korea qualified second of Group B which South Korea won undefeated Saudi Arabia, as the group’s third-place team, was relegated to a playoff with Group A third placer Bahrain. Australia and Japan qualified outright from Group A.
To support the national team Saudi fans are crossing over the King Fahd Causeway to Manama by the busloads (at least 50 buses) for the crucial tie.
The two Gulf states are familiar but fierce foes having frequently clashed at regional and continental levels. But the Saudis have almost always got the better of their rivals, including in high stake World Cup qualifiers the most recent of which was in 2001 when they drew 1-1 at home and won 4-0 away.
But this time around the general consensus is that the two teams are on an even footing with Bahrain having made handsome gains in the last few months and Saudi Arabia suffering some serious setbacks, including failing to gain an automatic berth at the World Cup.
This is also reflected in the latest FIFA rankings where Bahrain, who are yet to play in a World Cup, are ranked 64th, one place ahead of the Saudis.
Bahrain coach Milan Macala, however, is not getting carried away by this statistic or even his team’s recent victories over Kenya and, more significantly, Asian powerhouse Iran in friendly matches following a month-long training camp in Austria.
After all, the 65-year-old Czech Republic veteran knows his opponents well having coached them in the past and, more importantly, is well aware of his own team’s capacity to fall agonisingly short when it matters the most.
“The Saudis are a strong team. They are one of the best in Asia and have a number of class players,” said Macala.
“We will have a tough match, no doubt about it, but I think the result of the first leg will play an important role in deciding the ultimate winner. Our aim is to win here at home and make the best of it later.”
Saudi Arabia’s build up to this crucial clash has not been as encouraging as their opponents. A week-long training camp in Oman ended on a bitter note with the Saudis losing a friendly match 2-1 against the hosts.
The Saudi coach Jose Peseiro of Portugal has also had to deal with a serious injury problem with key striker Naif Hazazi ruled out for more than six months following a ligament injury during a friendly against the Malaysian under-23 side.
Hazazi has been replaced by Al-Ahli star striker Malek Muaz who will now have to work with midfielders Mohammed Nur and Mohammed Al Shalhoub to find a way past the Bahrain defense. Saudi star striker Yasser Al-Qahtani is back in the lineup but defender Reda Tukar and midfielder Abdu Utaif have both been ruled out because of injuries. Bahrain has no injury worries and the only player missing from the regular lineup is defender Abdulla Al Marzooqi who is serving a one-match ban.
This eagerly awaited match will be played late in the evening, starting at 10 p.m. local time (1900GMT), due to fasting during the holy month of Ramadan. But both the sides can expect good crowd support.
— With additional input from agencies
