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Argentine Marcelo Gallardo, coach of Al-Ittihad Jeddah, revealed a surprise about the reason for the exclusion of Frenchman Karim Benzema, the team’s captain, from the Al-Tai’i match.
Al-Ittihad achieved its second successive victory in all tournaments, and its first in the Saudi Professional League after 3 consecutive defeats, when it defeated its host Al-Tai by 3-0 in a postponed match from the 19th round of the local competition.
Benzema did not participate in the matches between Al-Ittihad and Al-Faisaly in the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Cup, last Sunday, and Al-Taei yesterday, after his absence from the team’s preparatory camp in Dubai.
The Argentine coach said, “Benzema has to work hard. He joined the team two days ago, and we will see him on the team list when he is in full physical and technical condition.”
Gallardo explained, “If you notice some expressions on my face, I am the type of person who stresses the players and people who work with me in order to obtain the highest degree of commitment. I also realize that players are exposed to injuries, and there are those who represent their teams, so we must work more.”
He continued, “We achieved a second victory in a row. The result was positive, we had the ball, and we controlled most parts of the match.”
Al-Ittihad ranks fifth in the Saudi League standings with 31 points.