Saudi Coach Content with Draw Against Uruguay

Saudi Arabia's head coach, Georgios Donis, has expressed satisfaction with his team's draw against Uruguay in their opening Group H match at the World Cup.

Donis highlighted that the limited time he's had with the squad prevented him from developing greater tactical flexibility, which could have further aided the Asian side against the experienced South American team. The Greek specialist replaced Hervé Renard in late April, and the match against Uruguay marked his official debut, having previously only led Saudi Arabia in three friendly matches before the 2026 World Cup.

"We've practically only been working together for three weeks, during which we've tried to establish our playing style, tactical setup, and boost team morale. Therefore, a point against a team like Uruguay is a positive result and will increase our confidence. I'm still trying to understand my team, to get to know the players better, their strengths and weaknesses. I see how they react and behave in certain situations, but I'm aware that due to insufficient time together, we haven't yet built the flexibility needed during matches.

We can play in 4-4-2 or 4-3-2-1 formations, but we also need to be able to transition into a setup with three midfielders or three at the back, which is essential. Currently, unfortunately, that's not the case. We lack that tactical variability. More time is needed to build it," Donis commented, as quoted by Reuters.

The Saudis opened the scoring just before halftime, and in the second half, they were largely forced to defend, conceding an equalizer ten minutes from time. "In the first half, we controlled the game well, and had a few chances to score, although they weren't clear-cut. We managed to take the lead, and in the second half, it was clear we'd have to defend more because we had the advantage, and the opponent had to seek their chances in attack. Our goal was to protect our lead, but we didn't succeed.

After the break, our intensity dropped, perhaps the players also tired towards the end. We allowed the opponent to push too deep into our half and were punished. We didn't show enough confidence, we didn't hold onto the ball well enough to disrupt their tempo. This allowed Uruguay to press us in front of our penalty area. Fortunately, we had an excellent goalkeeper and a very solid defense, and that helped us," Donis added.