Anbar blow for Saudi Arabia

There was bad news for Saudi coach Marcos Paqueta on Tuesday after his in-form young striker Mohammed Al Anbar received a knock which could see him miss the FIFA World Cup 2006 campaign. 

The 21-year-old striker suffered an ankle injury in the final training session before the Tunisia game, which kicks off in five hours, and was taken directly to hospital where he underwent a medical check.

There was disappointment in the Saudi camp as Al Anbar could not only miss Wednesday’s game but could also be out for the remainder of the tournament.

Despite the setback, team skipper Sami Al Jaber was optimistic that his side could beat Tunisia on Wednesday and that both teams will give their best at the Munich stadium.

“The atmosphere in this year’s event is different from what it was in Korea/Japan four years ago,” said Al Jaber. “At that time there were problems in the team and the technical staff.”

“The group we have now is better than it was before and we will try to avoid the mistakes that we committed before in order to have a good campaign this year,” added the veteran striker who will be playing his fourth World Cup tournament.

“It could be true that tomorrow’s sides are Arabs but I assure you that it will not be a typical Arabian encounter as both teams will present a European style which could please the fans”.

By Mohammed Hallal (AFC)