Saudi Arabia sack Peseiro after first game at Asian Cup
Saudi Arabian football officials Sunday fired coach Jose Peseiro after the team was stunned 2-1 by Syria in their Asian Cup Group B opener earlier in the evening.
|Last Updated: Jan 10, 2011, 11:32 AM IST|Source: Bureau
Doha: Saudi Arabian football officials Sunday fired coach Jose Peseiro after the team was stunned 2-1 by Syria in their Asian Cup Group B opener earlier in the evening.
The Saudi news agency SPA said that the Portuguese Peseiro had been releaved of his duties with immediate effect and that Nasser Al-Johar would coach the team for the two final group games against Japan and Jordan.
It is the fifth time that Al-Johar, who was appointed technical director after stepping down as national coach in February 2009, will be in charge of the national team.
In a statement the president of the Saudi football association Prince Sultan Bin Fahd Bin Abdulaziz said that Peseiro had made mistakes.
"It was necessary to correct these mistakes. He chose the wrong tactics for the game against Syria and a squad that was not suitable for the game.”
"We needed to correct that. It was clear that the style he adopted against the Syrians paralyzed the players. This became clear during the match.”
"We had to correct this mistake which is why we let him go," Prince Sultan Bin Fahd Bin Abdulaziz said.
A short while before being fired Peseiro had faced a barrage of criticism during the post-match press conference and was asked whether he accepted responsibility for the defeat.
"Do you take responsibility for the defeat, and if you do, are you going to resign?" a Saudi Arabian reporter asked him, while another questioned whether they were to blame for the defeat.The 50-year-old, for whom Saudi Arabia was the first position as national team coach, fought back. "I am not playing against the media, I am playing against Japan, Jordan and Syria.
"It was not a good result, but we did not play all that badly. We showed some good spirit and we deserved a better result," he said, adding that he thought the team could still go through.”
"I believe in this team, I believe we are winners. If we beat Jordan and Japan in our next two matches we will go through to the next phase," he said at the time, obviously not know what lay ahead.”
Saudi Arabia has a history of firing coaches during - and immediately after - competitions.
In 1998, Brazilian Carlos Alberto Parreira was sacked during the World Cup, while two years later Czech Milan Macala was dismissed after the Saudis lost their opening Asian Cup game 4-1 against Japan.Al-Johar took over at the time and managed to get the team into the final, where they lost to Japan.
Four years later Gerard Van der Lem was axed immediately after Saudi Arabia were knocked out in the first round of the Asian Cup following a 2-1 defeat against Iraq.
It was the first time in their history that the team had been knocked out in the first round.
Saudi Arabia are currently last in Group B, three points behind Syria. Japan and Jordan, who played to a 1-1 draw, are joint-second with one point.
Saudi Arabia has changed national team coaches 27 times in the last 20 years.
Bureau Report
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.