Badr Al-Raziza, President of the Saudi Football Federation, expressed his happiness at the Saudi team being crowned with the “Gulf 27” title, noting that the spirit that appeared among the players was one of the most prominent features of “Al-Akhdar” during the tournament, while he stressed that the future of Greek coach Giorgos Donis will be subject to evaluation and technical decision.
Al-Raziza said, in an exclusive interview with Asharq Al-Awsat after the coronation: “First, we say praise be to God, and we thank the leadership and the Minister of Sports for all the support, and for his presence with us and his support and attendance at the training. Today we say, thank God, the players and the technical staff did not fall short, and this is a tournament that we missed for 23 years, and thank God we were happy with it.”
In response to Asharq Al-Awsat’s question about what distinguished the Saudi team in this edition, he said: “The spirit of the team is what distinguishes it. The spirit that I felt between the players, and the harmony that existed between them, I think they were special and of a very high degree.”
Regarding Donis’ future with the Saudi national team, Al-Raziza explained: “These are technical decisions, not our decisions, and in the end, any decision related to Donis comes from the technical side, whether the technical director or the competent staff, and we do not know what will happen, but Donis is with us and you saw what he presented.”
Regarding the evaluation of the team’s performance during the tournament, the president of the Saudi Federation said: “In the end, there is a technical evaluation of the performance, and this is what we will look into, God willing.”
Under the patronage of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz, and on his behalf, Prince Saud bin Mishal, Deputy Governor of the Makkah Al-Mukarramah Region, witnessed the final match of the Arabian Gulf Cup Football Championship in its twenty-seventh edition, “Gulf Arabia 27”, and the Saudi team was crowned with the championship cup, after defeating the UAE team with a score of (0-2), in the match that was held between them at Al-Enmaa Stadium in King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah.
The match was attended by Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, Minister of Sports, FIFA President Gianni Infantino, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, President of the Gulf Football Association, Prince Saud bin Abdullah, Prince Saud bin Turki bin Faisal, Prince Saud bin Abdullah bin Jalawi, Governor of Jeddah, Prince Fawaz bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz, Governor of Taif, Prince Nawaf bin Muhammad, and Prince Saud bin Nawaf bin Muhammad.
It was also attended by Deputy Minister of Sports Badr Al-Qadi, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Football Federation, Badr Al-Ruzaiza, and heads and representatives of sports federations in the Arab Gulf countries.
The Minister of Sports and Chairman of the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee said: I extend my sincere congratulations and blessings to our wise leadership on our team’s victory in this precious tournament. Which represents great importance to us as Gulf Arabs. I also appreciate my brother, the Deputy Emir of the Makkah Al-Mukarramah Region, for his presence and coronation of the team that won the precious title, and I congratulate our loyal fans, who had the biggest role in Al-Akhdar’s march in this tournament, and were the best supporter of our Falcons in achieving this precious title, and all thanks to all the teams for their participation in this Gulf sports gathering, and for the distinguished levels they presented and honorable athletic competition, and we wish them success in the upcoming tournaments - God willing -.”
Greek Giorgos Donis, coach of the Saudi national team, confirmed that “Al-Akhdar” deserved to be crowned the “Gulf 27” title, noting that the tournament gave him a greater opportunity to get to know his players and watch their development, stressing that commitment and teamwork were among the most prominent reasons for success.
Donis said in the press conference after the final: “We are very happy, and I congratulate the players. This tournament was important for us, and I watched the players develop and became better acquainted with them. We went through a lot of difficulties and overcame them, and the players were always distinguished by their commitment, and we were the best team in the tournament.”
Regarding the final match, he said: “We scored early and were able to control the course of the match and create many opportunities. We faced difficulties, especially with Firas, Kanno and Al-Dosari playing a lot of minutes amid pressure and fatigue. However, the players gave a wonderful performance, and I am happy that we achieved the championship.”
The Greek coach explained that the group spirit was present from the beginning of the journey, adding: “From the first day, the players had desire and passion, and there was cohesion and harmony within the team. We learned a lot from the World Cup experience, and with instructions and work, we improved and developed step by step, and I believe that the players deserve this result.”
Donis thanked the Saudi fans and said: “I congratulate the fans, as they provided us with the best support throughout the tournament. We saw great desire, love and passion from them, and they supported us at all times. “I looked at them and felt that they deserved this joy, and today we made them happy.”
He added: “The players now feel confident and proud, and they can achieve more together. I thank everyone who worked on this tournament, and everyone who gave me this opportunity to achieve this achievement.”
Denis expressed his pride in working in Saudi Arabia, saying: “I want to do a lot of work for this country that I love, and I am proud to be here. I have a lot of friends here, and in Saudi Arabia the most beautiful people.”
Regarding the future of the team, he said: “I expect that we will continue to provide the same performance. When I took over the job, I did not know the players completely, and we did not play many matches, but with the passage of time we improved a lot, and now we see the amount of understanding and development within the team.
He stressed the importance of building on the current group, adding: “I always focus on teamwork, and we must develop football and prepare for the upcoming challenges.” After the World Cup results, I spoke with the officials and offered some solutions. There is a great desire to achieve better results, but we must continue to work and perform better.”
The coach asked for patience with the players, and said: “I respect the media, and I ask you for your patience and support.” We want to develop football and continue with this group of players, like Hammam and Firas. We have to be patient with them, and we will give our best in the upcoming events.”
Denis concluded his speech by stressing that the evaluation phase will begin after the title celebration, saying: “We will enjoy this moment, then evaluate our work and study all the matches technically, and search for the best solutions. We will choose the players that best suit us, and we will see what happens next month, with our next choices being in December.”
