Exciting possibilities await confident Saudis in World Cup draw

RIYADH: It is not hard to pick the darkest day for Saudi football on the global stage; the 8-0 thrashing by Germany at the 2002 World Cup finals will never be forgotten.

But as the day of the draw for the 2022 finals dawns on Friday, so too do thoughts of a chance for revenge, 20 years later. The Germans are one of many exciting opponents that Saudi Arabia could find themselves sharing a group with at the conclusion of the draw in Doha.

There are surely few more exciting and enjoyable days in football, off the pitch at least, than a World Cup draw, which brings with it myriad possibilities. The only thing that coach Herve Renard knows for sure ahead of time is that the Green Falcons will be in pot 4, which means all three of their opponents in the group will be above them in the FIFA rankings, so the challenge will be tough.

That was, however, also the case in 1994 when, after qualifying for the finals for the first time, Saudi Arabia found themselves in a group alongside the Netherlands, Belgium and Morocco — and still managed to finish in second spot.

What of their possible group-stage opponents this time? From pot 3, perhaps a tie with fellow Arab side Tunisia would be welcome. They are 35th in the FIFA rankings, the lowest-placed team in pot 3 (the Saudis are 49th). Or maybe Renard would welcome a reunion with Morocco, the team he took to the 2018 finals; that really would be a fascinating clash.

The Saudis cannot be placed in the same group as fellow Asian nations South Korea, Iran or Japan, so the other possibilities are Senegal — against whom they could exact some Arab revenge for eliminating Egypt — Serbia or Poland.

While a chance for payback against Germany is an attractive option, the problem with that