Al-Ittihad will face a difficult mission in the World Club Cup starting Sunday in Tokyo where they face a tough opponent, Al-Ahly of Egypt, who have not lost in the Egyptian football league with 10 straight wins.
Ittihad players arrived in Tokyo few days ago after training in Malaysia. Ittihad manager Hamad Al-Sanee said that the Saudi Club would put their best foot forward in trying to win the cup in Tokyo while also projecting a good image about Saudi Arabia.
He said that the team is fully prepared and the players have already experienced big occasions and are not overawed, also the club’s international coach has a great vision.
In the Saudi league there was no major change following the round nine of the league as Hilal continued to remain on top with 22 points followed by Shabab with 20 points, Ahli in third place with 13 points and Wehda fourth with 11 points.
The Jeddah derby between Ittihad and Ahli was postponed due to Ittihad’s participation in Japan.
The Riyadh derby between Hilal and Nasr ended 1-1, which slowed Hilal and shortened the gap of points between Hilal and Shabab.
Taie, Ittifaq, Ittihad and Nasr remained in the middle ranks with no major change in position.
Hazem, Ansar and Abha remained in the bottom.
Eligibility Row:
Al-Ittihad, meanwhile, sought on Thursday to play down a potential row over unregistered players before the start of the championship.
Egypt’s Al-Ahly have raised the stakes before the opening match by accusing Ittihad of including three unregistered players in their squad.
“FIFA are here — they can judge,” shrugged Ittihad coach Anghel Iordanescu. “As far as I’m concerned they are registered.
“I understand it’s part of the game. It’s a psychological ploy. Al Ahly are trying to disturb us.” Ittihad captain Muhammed Nur said the club feared nobody.
“Our aim in Japan is to take the trophy back with us.”
Volleyball:
In volleyball, Ahli defeated the major rival Hilal 3/2 in the volleyball league last Friday to go top with 18 points leaving Hilal in second position with 16 points. Nasr are third with 14 points and Al-Safa fourth with 12 points. It is most likely that the first round of the volleyball tournament will end with Ahli on top because the remaining matches they face in the round are easy.
Handball:
Ahli and Al-Noor of Qateef tied in an exciting match in Jeddah. The match ended 24-24. Despite the tie, Ahli remained on top of the handball competition with 14 points followed by Qadisiya with 12 points. Ahli face a very difficult match against Khaleej next Thursday in Jeddah.
Ahli’s New President
Ahli is finally on track after the honorary members chose Ahmad Al-Marzooki as new president of the following Abu Dawood’ resignation. Many fans described this as a new start for the team and its administration. The important meeting with the honorary members resulted in generating SR8 million for the club and also arriving at a decision to pay off all debts. Members of the club met again to discuss the appointment of a new coach for the team. The members also discussed ways of finding alternative source of income for the club through investments.
Equestrian Meeting
Meanwhile, Buraidah held the fourth Equestrian event for the (Majmoat Al-Tasheelat Al-Aqariya) Real Estate Facilities Group Cup, the feature, last Wednesday.
The day saw four races. Winners from the 1, 600m race was Almaal Stable’s Mssaket, followed by the 1, 400m race, which saw Mohammad Al-Akeel’s horse Ahlahunn triumph. The third race for the 2, 000m saw Mansour Al-Mesallah’s horse Hour Meesan and in the last, over 1, 600m, race Othman Al-Marshoud’s horse Taji won.
Boxing in Buraidah
Buraidah also hosted the boxing tournament for Group B at the Abdullah ibn Abdul Aziz Stadium last Wednesday. The two-day tournament saw 66 boxer from different clubs participate. According to Fahd Al-Ilayan, president of Youth Welfare at Al-Qaseem branch, seven referees officiated. — With input from agencies
