Saudi Arabia Sting Ivory Coast in a Tactical Jeddah Friendly

The Saudi national team earned a valuable and deserved 1-0 victory over Ivory Coast in a friendly played Friday evening at the Al Inam Stadium in Jeddah as part of the November international window.

This clash is part of preparations for the Green team participation in the Arab Cup to be held in Qatar at the start of next month, with the coaching staff aiming to raise the level of technical and physical readiness before entering the tournament with a strong squad capable of competing.

Saudi training camp in Jeddah continues with high discipline and focus from players who recognize the importance of proving themselves and competing for starting spots ahead of the tournament.

The Green are set to play their second friendly in this camp against Algeria on Tuesday evening, a test expected to be more challenging and competitive.

Match events

The match opened in a tactical and tight atmosphere as both sides were cautious in the early minutes, careful with positioning and build up.

Each team watched the other movements for fear of an early goal, resulting in a compact rhythm with short passes and limited advancing attempts.

Despite the relatively slow tempo, Saudi appeared more present and organized in possession and control of the game.

The Green players showed disciplined movement between lines with focus on high pressing to win the ball higher up the field, giving them clear dominance in midfield.

The wide areas showed flexibility in movement as teams tried to find spaces behind the Ivory Coast defence.

While Ivory Coast tried to keep a solid defensive shape, they committed a costly error in the seventh minute when a back line error was exploited by Saleh Abu Al Shamat who sprinted toward goal, faced the keeper and calmly placed the ball in the net for the opening goal.

The early goal unsettled the Elephants and forced them to abandon their defensive caution and chase an equalizer.

Ivory Coast began to seize initiative dominating possession and pressing the Saudi defence.

In the 13th minute a powerful Ivorians shot was parried by Nawaf Al Aqidi, one of the standouts to keep the lead.

The back and forth continued with Abu Al Shamat nearly doubling the lead in the 25th minute with a rocket that beat the keeper but struck the bar.

Franck Kessié replied with a powerful shot that narrowly missed the post after 35 minutes; Al Aqidi made a fine save to preserve the lead at half time.

Play resumed and in the 44th minute Kessié again threatened with a header saved by Al Aqidi.

At the start of the second half Ivory Coast moved with purpose and almost equalized in the 55th minute when Ibrahim Sangare hit a shot that rose over the bar.

61st minute a powerful strike from Kessié was parried by Al Aqidi as the visitors pressed.

71st minute Nasser Al Dosari fired a long range shot that missed wide.

82nd minute Kessié earned Ivory Coast an equalizer with a fierce shot inside the box but the referee ruled it out after VAR review.

Despite the disallowed goal Saudi maintained balance to the end thanks to organization and defense and the coach used this match to test players ahead of the next game against Algeria.

Technical gains and readiness before the Arab Cup

The match offered many lessons for the coaching staff on midfield control and variety of attacking options and tested the players ability to cope with physical and tactical pressure from a strong Ivory Coast side.

Despite some uneven moments the Greens left the game with a measure of satisfaction regarding performance and with valuable individual and collective experiences ahead of official commitments.

And yes, if you wonder how the team celebrates after a job well done, the answer is simple: one more pass, and then a victory lap around the field, preferably with a souvenir of their own balance sheet. Humor aside, this is a setup for bigger tests ahead.