Former Al-Ittihad club captain and national team coach Adel Al-Thaqafi believed that the secret to Al-Ittihad’s declining performance in recent matches was that the team suffered from the weakness of some centers, especially on the axis. a qualitative leap in performance and the level of players, but, unfortunately, at the beginning of the season, the absences affected the technical plans of the coach, and everyone was looking for an excuse for his failure to appear at the right level.
Al-Thakafi added, but after the level of the league went up and also with the rounds going on, it became clear that the team lacked identity inside the field in every way and this revealed a big weakness in some centers, the most important of which is the focal point and parties.
Al-Thakafi explained that this imbalance was caused by the selection of foreign professionals who are not at the expected level, such as Tarik Hamed and Helder Costa. Even if we note that the team was under a lot of pressure during the last matches, it was clear that some the players were unable to try to develop their levels and lost some points because of this.
The national coach explained that he blames Nuno Santo for not finding solutions, especially in these areas, at least for putting Awad Al-Nashiri and giving him a chance in the starting lineup, due to the many warnings in address of Tarik and his great recklessness. in many matches.
And also to give young Marawan Al-Sahafi a chance and continue to start with Abdel-Rahman Al-Aboud and Abdel-Aziz Al-Bishy on a full-time basis instead of Costa, who lacks the courage to move forward. Al-Thaqafi explained that opposing coaches rely on Costa, Zakaria and even Hamdan and use them as loopholes to attack Grohe’s goal, while the former federation captain confirmed that Santo seems to have beliefs and a particular philosophy in every match. carried out by the players. do not understand.
Regarding the constant missed opportunities, especially on the part of Abdul Razzak Hamdallah, he notes that Hamdallah after the World Cup suffers from a lack of concentration, as well as indifference and recklessness in front of the goal, his lack of ambition, and also there is no scorer in the team, and even the presence of Kamara and Al – Sayari will not be enough for an offensive role because they are supportive strikers. And they are not scorers, and even those who come from behind like Romarinho, his level has decreased, and this is due to the lack of a foreign and local alternative that competes with him for a slot, and even Coronado did not provide the large sums that were presented to him, and I think that some foreign players need a fierce competitor for their slot, and we do not forget the important thing, which is that the players of the professional federation play in the mood, and if they are in a good mood, their performance is well reflected, and if they are the opposite, we see a technical breakdown on the field.
