Saudi U19 coach Marcos Soares says WAFF win can be World Cup blueprint

Saudi Arabia’s 1-0 victory over the UAE in the final of the West Asian Football Federation (WAFF) Under-19 Championship last Sunday was just another step towards a bigger prize for the Kingdom’s talented young footballers, according to the team’s coach Marcos Soares.

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The Brazilian had previously led the youth sides of three of the biggest clubs in his homeland – Santos, Corinthians, and Botafogo – as well as Al Hilal’s Under-17 side. Since 2022, he has been overseeing the development of Saudi Arabia’s brightest prospects as the U-19 coach.

Soares guided his team to a first-ever triumph in the Arab Games last July and has now added a maiden WAFF U-19 Championship trophy to the young Green Falcons’ growing cabinet – thanks to the hard-fought win against the UAE.

“It was very tough because most of the players had never played before in official international tournaments,” Soares told Al Arabiya English a couple of days after the final. “At the beginning, it was difficult because they were a little bit nervous, but step by step, they became confident.”

“They never gave up, they never stopped believing they could win. The success is not mine, I am just trying to lead them in the right direction.”

Most exciting football talents

Saudi Arabia’s match-winner in the final was precocious Al Ittihad striker Talal Haji who, despite being just 16 years old, has emerged as one of the Kingdom’s most exciting football talents in recent memory.

Haji has made history multiple times over the past nine months, becoming the youngest player and scorer in the Saudi Pro League, the youngest player to make his international debut for Saudi Arabia, and the youngest player to play in the AFC Asian Cup at 16 years and 131 days.

Soares has worked with Haji extensively and enthusiastically recommended the striker to Saudi Arabia senior boss Roberto Mancini. The Brazilian coach sees this player with all the qualities necessary to make a big impact in football, though he has warned against building Haji up too much, too early.

“Talal is very young, but he has already played a lot of matches for Al Ittihad,” Soares explained. “He has played well, but it is easier to play with players like [Karim] Benzema and [N’Golo] Kante than when we are together with the national team.”

“It is difficult to predict how good he can be because there is still so much time for development, but he is doing very well. He’s strong physically, which makes him stand out because we don’t have a lot of players like him in Saudi Arabia,” Soares added.

‘A star is rising’

However, he has a word of caution as well. “He has a very good left foot, is good in the air, and has a good mentality. He is heading in the right direction, and everybody is believing that maybe a star is rising, but let’s be calm and not put too much pressure on him,” he said.

There has been much debate in the Kingdom about whether the influx of star names to the Saudi Pro League over the past 18 months will ultimately benefit the national team, or whether it will be detrimental because homegrown players’ opportunities will be restricted.

Soares recognizes why there may be some concerns about game time being reduced for young Saudis, but insists that the impact of bringing established stars to the Kingdom has already been positive.

“I believe it’s good that we have these changes now,” Soares said. “I have a striker in my team [Haji] who has trained and played with Benzema and I have a midfielder [Farhah al-Shamrani] who has played and trained with Kante.”

“Of course, they might not play as much, but Talal and Farhah have shown that if you are good enough you can get opportunities. And even if you do not make the first XI, you can still train with the best players in the world. To me, this is only a good thing.”

‘Great connection between staff and players’

Soares’ current crop now has its sights set on qualifying for the 2025 AFC U19 Asian Cup in China, with Australia, Palestine, Afghanistan, and Macau standing in their way. The top four teams at the Asian Cup will reach the FIFA U19 World Cup in Chile and Soares hopes Saudi Arabia will be back at youth football’s top table after missing out in 2023.

“We are working on their confidence,” the Brazilian said. “First, we need to make them believe that we can reach the Asian Cup, then we ought to believe we can reach the World Cup. It’s not easy, but I am sure we can make it.”

He continued, “There is a great connection between the staff and the players, who want to succeed and respect that we are trying to make them better. But we still have a lot to do to reach the levels we want them to be in for the 2034 World Cup.”

With Saudi Arabia set to host FIFA’s flagship men’s tournament in 2034, Soares’ role has become even more important. The players who won the WAFF Championship, and last year’s Arab Games, will be at the peak of their careers a decade from now and could form the backbone of the Green Falcons side that will compete in a home World Cup.

“Nowadays, Saudi Arabia is investing so much in football and of course, that means that there is a little bit of pressure because we need to show results,” Soares reflected. “Thankfully, we have already won two tournaments, so we are doing well.”

“I believe Saudi fans can be excited about this group of players and the other young players who we have brought through. It’s a long journey, but I am really happy because the players are with me, they’re doing good work now. We have a big challenge ahead.”

On Mancini’s radar

Senior Green Falcons coach Mancini has called up several young players to his squads since taking over the national team’s reins last summer and Soares says he has enjoyed his working relationship with the Italian, who has won the European Championship, English Premier League, and Serie A during a glittering coaching career.

“I know he watched the WAFF final with the president. Roberto knows how the young players are performing,” Soares said. “He is a busy man, but we live close by in Riyadh and sometimes we talk in the gym, or on the padel court.”

“Before I announce my squads, I always send them to him and talk through them – telling him about certain players. We spoke about Tala, of course, before he called him up to the senior squad and he has also selected Musab Fahd al-Juwayr, Abbas al-Hassan, and Marwan al-Sahafi, who were with us before.”

“Everybody is happy when I win titles, but the most important part of my role is to help my players succeed and reach the senior national team. This is my job. We know if the senior team is winning, things are good.”

“This is our flag, our marker. We hope in a few years, we will win the Asian Cup again, and continue to qualify for the World Cup,” a confident Soares said.

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