Difficulty of Beating Al Hilal
Portuguese coach Jose Gomes, head coach of Al Fateh, faces a daunting test as Al Hilal looms in the Saudi Pro League. The game will be hosted by Al Hilal at Kingdom Arena on Saturday, in the ninth round of the season.
Gomes spoke at a Thursday press conference about the challenge, acknowledging that defeating Al Hilal will be very hard while outlining a plan to push for a result.
Al Fateh S Situation and Outlook
Gomes noted that Al Hilal is exceptionally strong with solid defensive organization, very fast players, and high technical quality, so the match will be difficult.
Regarding a potential win at Kingdom Arena, he said it would be tough and that several players may be unavailable, but even if they play, overcoming Al Hilal remains a challenge.
On how to beat them, Gomes explained that the key is to stay defensively solid first, then look to exploit spaces and impose pressure when in possession, but defense comes first.
He emphasized the need to be extremely solid defensively to have any chance, pointing to goals conceded from long balls and from setups with seven defenders against three attackers, or five defenders against attackers, which he deemed unacceptable.
We must be more decisive in attack because scoring is not impossible; if we want to achieve something, we must defend well and be sharp in attack, he added.
Al Fateh Situation
Gomes then discussed the season’s difficulties due to injuries and a run of poor results. He said he feels he owes the club seven or eight points and is determined to make up the gap.
He said they should have won against Al Fayha, Al Hazm, and Damac, and he is confident they will recover those points. He stressed his commitment to Al Fateh and his intention to push the players to give their all.
A belief that success requires a collective effort from staff and players was reinforced. He recalled that last season they escaped relegation because they acted as a family, and noted he officially took over after leaving Zamalek.
Rumors linking him with a return to other clubs were mentioned, but he remained with Al Fateh and underscored his intent to continue the project to the end.
Regarding missing players, Gomes said they are working daily with many academy players and that this season young players like Mehdi Al Obood and Mohammed Al Suhehi have already featured in eight matches, with six or seven academy players training daily.
Al Fateh sits fifteenth in the Saudi Pro League with five points, earned from one win, two draws, and five defeats.
Easy Mission
The match looks theoretically straightforward for Al Hilal in round nine as they host Al Fateh, hoping to keep pace with the leaders Al Nassr, four points ahead.
Hilal previously routed Al Fateh by nine goals last season and the blue giants continue to pursue success across three competitions: the league, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Cup, and the AFC Champions League. They are unbeaten in the league, sit in fourth place, and have reached the King Cup quarterfinals where they will meet Al Fateh again.
In Asia, Hilal tops West Asia Group with 12 points from four matches. They will host Al Shorta of Iraq in the fifth round on Tuesday to reinforce their winning streak.
Punchlines and light-hearted notes: Sniper punchline 1: if defense wins championships, Gomes might need to rent a fortress for the back line. Sniper punchline 2: if Fateh pulls off the upset, the headlines will read that chaos on the pitch beat continuity in the calendar and somehow found a way to smuggle drama into a league match.
