French coach Hervé Renard, coach of the Saudi national team, justified his team's failure to qualify for the round of 16 in the FIFA World Cup finals in Qatar, by the fatigue suffered by its players against Mexico on Wednesday, and said that the "green" deserved a greater loss.
The Saudi national team lost 1-2 to Mexico, in the third and final round of the third group matches of the group stage, to fail to reserve a seat in the knockout stages of the tournament, and to repeat its historic achievement that it achieved in its first appearance in the competition during the 1994 edition in the United States.
"It's not a big disappointment. I think we didn't go into the game well. In terms of pace and physical presence, they (Mexico) were better than us. We were always trying to fight for the ball, but we were always Slow and late.
He explained, "We conceded two goals from two set pieces, and we had some chances. We could have scored more than one goal, but when you are forced to win, you cannot close all the spaces and outlets. I think that the result does not reflect the course of the match, as we deserved to be defeated by a large number of goals." Had it not been for the presence of Al Owais, he saved us from a goal in the third minute, and we could not deal with the ferocity and enthusiasm of Mexico in the bilateral confrontations.
The French coach refused to blame the absences in the ranks of Saudi Arabia, with 4 players leaving for injury and suspension.
He said, "The squad includes 26 players, and we have to deal with what we have. Yes, injuries affected us, but it is not an excuse. Against Poland we were the best party, but we lacked effectiveness. Today, we played poorly."
Renard indicated that he congratulated the Saudi players for their overall performance in the tournament.
He added, "We gave our best, and we will not forget the work we did together. I am proud to work with the team and the players, but we did not deserve to win today."
Renard spoke about the difficulty of participating in the World Cup, due to the diversity and strength of the teams.
He said, "What happened to us was repeated with Qatar and Tunisia. It is difficult to reach the round of 16. Saudi Arabia succeeded in that once before, a long time ago in 1994. We dream of returning to the World Cup and qualifying for the next round."
Renard indicated that Saudi Arabia will start preparing for the 2023 Asian Cup, which will be hosted by Qatar.
The AFC did not specify a date for the tournament, either at the end of 2023 or to postpone it until 2024.
He concluded by saying, "We have a long time to prepare for the Asian Cup, which may be held at the end of next year. Winning the title and succeeding in the next World Cup qualifiers are among the goals of the Saudi team."