Saudi Arabia look to final victory as they kick off U23 Asian Cup against Tajikistan

Saudi Arabia face Tajikistan in their opening game of the U23 Asian Cup on Friday, hoping to go one better than they did last time. The team lost to South Korea in the final of the 2020 tournament just before the pandemic struck. More than three years later, a new generation of stars are in Uzbekistan looking to shake Asia.

Much has changed in the team since 2020 but Saad Al-Shehri remains the man in charge. The 42-year-old has plenty of experience in youth tournaments. He led the under-19 team to the final of the 2016 Asian Cup, where they lost to Japan.

The young Samurai Blue, who are also in Group D, will start their campaign against the UAE. It’s a tough group. The Saudi team need a good start against Tajikistan to have the best chance of finishing in the top two and progressing to the knockout stage. The final will be held on June 19 in Tashkent.

“We know that it is not going to be easy but we are ready for the challenge,” said Al-Shehri. “We have a great group of players and we are working hard. We are taking each game at a time and we are fully focused on the meeting with Tajikistan.”

There will have to be improvements over the qualification campaign, where the team squeezed through as one of the best runners-up. Losing the opening game to Kuwait put the team on the backfoot and qualification lay in the balance. However, results have been better this year with wins over Qatar, Uzbekistan and Iraq.

Unlike most of the other 15 teams in the competition, Al-Shehri’s squad has to bow to the needs of the senior side. The start of preparations for the 2022 World Cup means that the boss will be without two of his best players. Al-Shabab centre-back Hassan Tambakti has had an impressive season for the Saudi