Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Jakarta: Even before the dust could settle on the AFC U-19 Championship Indonesia 2018 Final Draw on Friday, Saudi Arabia team manager Omar Alghmadi had already set his target.
The two-time champions and 2016 runners-up were drawn with Tajikistan, China PR and Malaysia in Group D.
“We expect to play against tough teams, but our main goal is to reach the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2019,” revealed Alghmadi.
“We have to respect all the teams we are playing against, and hopefully we can perform well in this Championship.
“All the teams are competitive, and some of them play fast, others are physically stronger and tougher than our players, but as I’ve mentioned, our aim is go to the U-20 World Cup and we are focusing to claim one of the four spots.”
Saudi Arabia performed spectacularly in the Qualifiers, recording three wins to secure their spot in the Finals as Group D winners.
“The players have been playing together for a while and know one another very well. They followed the tactics of the coach, and our coach knows how to give each and every player their specific task.
“The players performed well (in the Qualifiers), and hopefully by the time we begin playing here in October, we will do better than the qualifiers.”