FRANCE 98 – HRH Prince Walid Ben Bader Ben Saoud, president of the Saudi Arabian delegation: “The team are in good spirits”

Statement made in BORDEAUX

H.R.H Prince Walid BEN BADER BEN SAOUD, the new president of the SAUDI ARABIA delegation

“I had a meeting with the players and the members of the technical team on Saturday 20 June. The team are in good spirits. We have noticed a real change in their state of mind. I believe the results of the last matches (1-0 against DENMARK on Friday 12 June in LENS, and 4-0 against France on Thursday 18 June in SAIN-DENIS) were due to a certain amount of pressure exerted by the coach Carlos Alberto PARREIRA on the players. After our meeting with the team, the players promised me they would obtain a positive result against SOUTH AFRICA on Wednesday 24 June at Parc Lescure in BORDEAUX. The players are no longer under any pressure and we hope that this match will reveal the true quality of Saudi Arabian football. I did not ask them to respond in words but in action on the field, against SOUTH AFRICA. So we’re not necessarily looking for a result. What we are interested in is playing excellent quality football.”