German Jens Vissing, coach of Al-Ittihad, stressed the importance of achieving victory over Neftchi of Uzbekistan, on Monday, in the third round of the AFC Champions League for the elite, to compensate for the points that the team lost in the past two rounds, explaining that the pressure of matches requires rotating players and making changes to the lineup in proportion to the technical requirements of each match.
Vissing said, during the pre-match press conference: “The playing style we adopt requires rotation between players to help them adapt to the technical requirements of each match, and the atmosphere will not be an obstacle to us; “It is a natural thing that we have to deal with, focusing on achieving victory.”
He added: “We seek to win tomorrow’s match to make up for the points we lost in the past two matches and continue our journey in the tournament.”
The German coach praised the level of Uzbekistan's Nefichi, explaining that it is a good team that leads the local league in his country, and offers distinguished levels, in addition to possessing clear offensive effectiveness, which requires Al-Ittihad to deal with the confrontation with great focus.
For his part, Serbian Predrag Rajkovic, Al-Ittihad goalkeeper, confirmed that the team is working to adapt to the pressure of matches, and to raise its physical and technical readiness, in an effort to regain its level and achieve positive results in the continental championship.
Rajkovic said: “Our start to the tournament was not at the level we hoped for, and we will work to make tomorrow’s match our real start.”
Italian Giovanni Solinas, coach of Al-Faisaly, stressed the difficulty of the confrontation awaiting his team against Abha, in the postponed match of the eighth round, stressing that the closeness of points between the two teams will give the match great importance in the race to improve positions.
Solinas said, during the press conference preceding the confrontation: “Abha is a strong and difficult team, and despite some absences and injuries in its ranks, it has a very good group of players and an experienced coach, and therefore we will enter the match with all our energy and focus, especially since it may change the two teams’ positions and their position in the standings.”
He added: “We realize that Abha will play the match on its home soil and among its fans, and will seek to achieve a positive result that will be the beginning of its path towards collecting more points.”
In response to Asharq Al-Awsat’s question about the possibility of Al-Faisaly exploiting the decline in Abha’s results, which is in last place with two points from two draws, without achieving any victory, Solinas said: “I respect all teams, and I do not deal with any competitor as weak or strong, and I always strive to be humble in dealing with everyone.”
He continued: “The work I presented against the big teams such as Al-Hilal, Al-Qadisiyah, Al-Ittihad, Al-Shabab and Al-Nasr, I will present it in the same way against Abha, as it is a team that deserves respect, and we must continue the same approach against all competitors.”
The Al-Faisaly coach concluded his speech by emphasizing that the closeness in points between the two teams will make the confrontation more difficult and competitive, as each of them seeks to achieve a positive result and improve its position in the ranking table.
Belgian Koen Casteels, goalkeeper of Al-Qadisiyah, stressed the readiness of his team after overcoming the effects of the defeat against Al-Hilal, stressing that they are looking forward with great enthusiasm to take on the upcoming Asian challenge against Al-Sadd of Qatar in the third round of the group stage of the AFC Champions League for the elite.
Castells said in exclusive statements to Asharq Al-Awsat: “We recovered well after the Al-Hilal match, and we continue to recover to be fully prepared tomorrow... We always try to win every match, but competing in the AFC Champions League is not easy. Because it includes the best clubs in the continent.”
He added: “We are eagerly looking forward to this confrontation. “It is a great challenge against a strong and excellent team like Al Sadd, and we must provide our highest levels, and we have the quality and efficiency to achieve victory on our home soil and among our fans.”
In the same context, defender Jihad Zakri confirmed turning the page on the local match and focusing exclusively on the continental confrontation, expressing the players’ definite desire to compensate and go far in the “elite”.
Zikri said in his statements to Asharq Al-Awsat: “We are fully prepared for the next match, which is a strong confrontation against a big team... We have turned the page on the Al-Hilal match, and we aspire, God willing, to make amends in the next match and score the three points. “We strongly aspire to go far in this tournament.”
