Saudi Gazette report

JEDDAH — Yasser Al Misehal, president of the Saudi Football Federation, expressed his dissatisfaction with the Saudi national team’s performance in the Asia qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, indicating that a meeting will be held on Wednesday to correct the course.

The Saudi green team faced another setback in the fourth round of qualifiers, finishing their match against Bahrain in a goalless draw, bringing their total points to five. They are now tied with Australia and Bahrain, while Japan leads the group with ten points.

In comments to media representatives, Al Misehal said: “The level was good, and we owe an apology to the large audience that supports us. We haven’t seen the Saudi national team in this condition, and we are not satisfied with what’s happening. Obtaining two points from three home matches is unacceptable, and a decision will be made.”

He added: “We have a technical director who discusses with the coach and analyzes every match. The green team’s performance against Japan was better. With all due respect to the Bahrain team, I believe it should have been easy to finish the match, and we missed a penalty, which is completely unacceptable.”

Al Misehal continued, “We understand the intense frustration from everyone. As the federation president, I take full responsibility and promise everyone improvement.”

Regarding future decisions, he said, “It is impossible to let the team appear in this manner for three matches in front of fans who support us from the first to the last minute. Until when?!”

He noted that the results have not favored the team, with Japan leading the group with ten points while the green team shares five points with Australia and Bahrain. Nonetheless, he confirmed that there are difficult away matches ahead.

Al Misehal mentioned, “We will meet with the technical staff and board members to see what the national team needs to present a better image in November.”

When asked about a lack of confidence in Mancini, he stated: “It’s not possible to evaluate the situation right now; we are in a moment of anger. We will sit down with the technical staff, and hopefully, good things will happen. We haven’t discussed any decisions yet; just give us a few days to observe.”

He concluded his remarks by saying, “In the end, you are leading a system that must support all its elements, and I cannot speak publicly about everything that happens internally. We will address internal matters.”