5 things to look out for as Arab quartet start Qatar 2022 preparations

RIYADH: The World Cup moves a step closer next week with all four Arab participants taking part in friendly matches. Arab News has five talking points ahead of the crucial international break.

1. Saudi Arabia looking for result against Ecuador

The Green Falcons are heading to Spain for a training camp and games against fellow World Cup entrants Ecuador and the US.

At this stage of preparation, performances are more important than results but disappointing defeats against Colombia and Venezuela in June, two South American teams that will not even be in Qatar, showed that there is still much work to do.

Ecuador will be there and are once again concerned that they could be kicked out of the tournament after being accused of fielding an ineligible player in qualification. It is up to Herve Renard and the players to take advantage of any distraction.

It is important for confidence and self-belief to get a result. A win would obviously be ideal as it is important for Saudi Arabia to know they can defeat a team from South America – after all, the opening game in November is against Argentina – but not falling to a third straight defeat would be a step in the right direction.

After that is a test against the US who released a roster full of players in action at high levels in Europe, a sobering reminder of the quality that even a team that is not expected to go far at the World Cup possess – but all the focus needs to be on getting a result against Ecuador.

2. Tunisia need to build on encouraging results

Tunisia are heading to France for a training camp and it is a feather in their cap to be facing Brazil so close to the World Cup. It is also important given that the Carthage Eagles are going to be taking on defending