Moataz Al Shami (Dubai)
The technical staff of our first national football team, led by Dutchman Marvik, continues to follow the matches of the “13th round” of the “ADNOC Professional League”, in order to choose the most appropriate elements for the upcoming gathering that “Al-Abyad” enters on January 18, and will continue until the seventh and eighth rounds, of the journey Qualifiers for the World Cup 2022, against Syria on January 27, and Iran on February 1, in Group A.
And the team’s front line became in trouble, not only because of the lack of success in the offensive force in the qualifiers, represented by Ali Mabkhout, the top scorer of “Al-Abyad” and Al-Jazira, in addition to Tigali, the Al-Nasr striker, who witnessed only 4 goals scored in 6 matches.
The attack situation continues in the same crisis, especially after Mabkhout’s departure from participation during the past rounds, and his unwillingness to catch up with the expected gathering on January 18, as the player is expected to be absent from the camp, which makes the front line options very narrow for Marvik, who finds himself in front of relying on Tigali On his own, he needs to search for other options, and he may find them in the second row players, and some of the names that have emerged recently, such as Ahmed Fawzy, the Al-Jazira striker, or the return of Zayed Al-Amiri, who did not participate primarily with his team, and was injured recently, and is expected to return to the Al-Jazira squad. .
Marvik had expressed his lack of conviction that Tigali alone would lead the team’s attack, as he had previously tried it in the last two official matches of “Al-Abyad” in the Arab Cup, and Tigali did not provide the expected performance at a time when the team needs a spearhead that can implement tactical ideas, and help The team must achieve positive results, especially against Syria on January 27, a match in which the team needs to come out with a “full mark” to ensure its chances of competing for the qualification ticket to the continental playoff.
The technical staff of our national team will be required to search for solutions during its follow-up to the current round of the league, in addition to the quarter-finals of the President’s Cup on January 15 and 16, in the hope of choosing the best equipment for the expected gathering, while the next stage is expected to witness some tactical changes in the way and style of play, and also The positions of some players to increase the offensive effectiveness, in light of the impact of the striking force of “Al-Abyad” during the qualifying campaign, and this was evident even in the recent Arab Cup matches.
The return of Fabio de Lima to participate with Al-Wasl and provide a distinguished performance, was one of the positive points, as the player missed the Arab Cup because of injury, and Lima was not the only gain for “Al-Abyad”, but Ali Saleh also regained his effectiveness and offensive risk, and became one of the important options in the squad. The team needs to perform with a high fighting spirit during the next stage, to enhance its chances of achieving positive results during the remaining rounds of the World Cup qualifiers.
For his part, German Schaefer, the former coach of Al-Ain, Al-Ahly youth and Bani Yas, stressed the need to search for solutions to develop the team’s performance at the offensive level, especially as it suffered during the qualifying campaign from many missed opportunities and lack of focus in the final touch, noting that Mabkhout’s absence, in addition to the lack of The presence of a ready alternative to the center of the striker and the spearhead, is a new crisis for the team in the upcoming matches, and therefore requires the need to change the philosophy of dealing with the skilled offensive elements in the squad.
Schaefer praised the talents available in the league in general, pointing out that there are players with individual solutions, who can make a difference in the performance of the team when they are used, in addition to the presence of players who deserve opportunities to participate, and this depends on Marvik’s vision for sure, and pointed out that the intensification of the presence of midfield players and parties in The squad will be an alternative option, if Al-Abyad does not have the ready-made striker, whether for injuries or absences.
The German coach stressed the need for the team play philosophy to be present in the team’s tactics in the upcoming matches, while securing the middle and defense and exploiting players with experience and skills to increase homogeneity between them.
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