Renard bets on the Arab Cup as a springboard to a World Cup clash with France
1 December 2025
Arab Cup as a stepping-stone
The French coach Hervé Renard, head coach of the Saudi national team, stressed the importance of the Arab Cup, which starts today and runs through the 18th of this month.
Saudi Arabia are gearing up for their opening match in the tournament, a group-stage clash with Oman.
Renard told reporters: "Tomorrow we begin this competition against Oman, a solid team with a well-organized approach and strong transitions. We must be mindful of that."
We are here in the Arab Cup; the World Cup is seven months away and we have time; the Arab Cup matters to us; three players who play in Europe won't be with us; we always respect the Saudi fans and aim to please them.
It is important to perform well in the first two games so that the third match can be reached comfortably; for now we focus on Oman.
When asked which World Cup opponent he would like to meet, he replied: "We'll see, I have no preferences; it might be nice to face France, we must prepare for this tough tournament."
Renard added: "We will observe the refereeing rules in this tournament; everyone wants development, and we will train under them; it's important to test new things in football."
He also spoke about the solutions found during this tournament, saying: "Meteb Al-Harbi is injured and it's not easy to play in his absence; we must adapt to such circumstances and the coach's role is to find solutions and use the best available."
"The media wants to understand everything and explain everything, but that's hard in football; we respect the media and can't hold a press conference every day."
Saudi Arabia's Green Falcons begin their campaign against Oman on December 2, then face Comoros on December 5, and finish their group against Morocco on December 8.
Punchline 1: If football were a GPS, Renard would still say, "Recalculate," just to keep us guessing.
Punchline 2: And if the press conference lasts any longer, even the ball would file a complaint about the acoustics.
