Saitama: With the second leg of the AFC Champions League final between Al Hilal and Urawa Red Diamonds now almost upon us, the-AFC.com sat down for a chat with one of Al Hilal's greatest footballing legends: Sami Al Jaber.
The long-serving former forward, who was part of Al Hilal’s continental title-winning side in 2000, will be in attendance at Saitama Stadium on Saturday as the competition reaches its climax with the sides all square after a 1-1 draw in the first leg in Riyadh.
Q. Why have Al Hilal been so consistent in this year’s AFC Champions League?
A: We always view Al Hilal as an example of stability; this is very important to mention because at the club you see stability with the technical staff and the administration.
Al Hilal have been working on short, medium and long-term plans since 2009, which has benefited the club, as you can see by them being in two Asian finals over a three-year period.
Q. How impressed have you been with Omar Khribin’s performances?
A: Omar Khribin is one of the most important players in Asia right now. He worked really hard to adapt to his new club when he first joined Al Hilal.
He has become very influential and his outstanding performances have helped the club win the league title and the King’s Cup.
We have to mention what he has done in the AFC Champions League this year because his quality has made all the difference.
Although he did manage to score in the home match against Urawa, he was very unlucky as he could have scored a hat-trick. He’s the type of player that could win a game for you at any time.
I don’t think he will feel pressure in the second leg with Urawa but a player of his quality will be hugely important if Al Hilal are going to win the competition.
Q. What do you expect from the game on Saturday?
A: In my opinion, the match in Riyadh was dominated by Al Hilal, especially in the first half when it could have ended either 3-1 or 4-1 as Al Hilal wasted many chances and the Urawa goalkeeper played a perfect game.
But Al Hilal might have to change their approach in the away game. They lost 30 per cent of their power with Carlos Eduardo’s injury, although it won’t stop players like Nawaf Al Abed, Salem Al Dawsari and Khribin launching quick counter-attacks.
Abdullah Otayf, Salman Al Faraj and Nicolas Milesi are also very important to the side because they help the balance both in defence and in attack. Urawa also play as a team, not as individuals, so for Al Hilal to win they must stay tactically disciplined for 90 minutes.
Q. Having spent almost 20 years as a player with Al Hilal, what is your favourite memory?
There are many great memories from my time with Al Hilal, which began when I was 14 years old. The only time I didn’t play for them was when I was on loan at Wolverhampton Wanderers.
My relationship with Al Hilal isn’t just about being a player there, it is a matter of love, loyalty and admiration for the club.
Q. What are your recollections of the 2000 Asian Club Championship final against another Japanese side, Jubilo Iwata?
A: One thing I remember about our match with Jubilo Iwata was the rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Japan that started in the final of the 1992 AFC Asian Cup in Japan and then went on to the final of the 2000 AFC Asian Cup in Lebanon, when we lost both games 1-0.
In the match with Jubilo, the technical skills of both sets of players were very similar, with a slight advantage for the Saudi players in terms of individual skills and the Japanese players with their tactical discipline.
This is the same situation with the teams now, so if the Saudi players can be tactically disciplined they can control the match and beat the Japanese teams – as we did against Jubilo Iwata.
Q. Finally, looking ahead again, what is your prediction for the result on Saturday?
A: Both teams can win the game as both have players who can score goals. However, if Al Hilal can score an early goal I predict a 2-1 win for them.
Photos: Lagardère Sports
Source: the-afc.com