Athletes and technical analysts advised ADNOC Professional League clubs not to be fooled by the great results they achieved during friendly matches against teams they described as “modest and obscure” during the external summer camps that the clubs recently held in preparation for the new season. They considered that playing friendly matches against technically and tactically modest teams does not reveal mistakes and negatives and does not constitute a great benefit, while others stressed that there are local clubs that were keen to play friendly matches against strong teams in order to achieve the desired technical benefit.
They told Al-Emarat Al-Youm: “There are teams that won their friendly matches with big results of five, six and seven goals against weak teams, some of which are unknown.”
It is worth noting that, according to statistics monitored by “Emirates Today”, the number of friendly matches for professional clubs in their external camps reached 60 matches, during which they won 28 matches, lost 12, and tied 20 matches. During these matches, our clubs scored 133 goals, while their nets received 62 goals.
Unknown teams
Sports commentator and technical analyst Ali Hamid said: “Unfortunately, for a long time now, there have been local clubs that do not benefit greatly from the friendly matches they play in external training camps.”
“The camps have two parts: one is preparation, and the other is friendly matches, which are part of the preparation, but the matter depends on (who you are playing with), and unfortunately our teams take matters related to friendly matches in a negative way, not positively, and there are teams that win their friendly matches with big results against unknown teams, whether they are fourth or fifth division or amateurs, and therefore playing with such teams sometimes does not achieve the desired benefit, and as long as such matches do not reveal the negatives to our clubs and only show the positives, they have no value.”
Ali Hamid pointed out that friendly matches are an essential part of the preparation period, as both negatives and positives become clear through them. These matches reveal the players’ capabilities, and at the same time they are an opportunity to translate the coach’s ideas.
He stressed that there are clubs that have accumulated experience, and it is assumed that they know their pros and cons in the matter of preparation.
Lack of real friction
For his part, former international player and technical analyst Salem Hadid confirmed that some of the friendly matches played by some of our teams during their external camps against modest teams or teams below them in level are not beneficial and have no value due to the modesty of the competitor and the absence of real friction that reveals the negatives and positives, pointing out that these teams will be shocked by the reality on the ground when they face a real test.
Salem Hadid described such friendly matches, in which some local teams win by big scores against modest teams, as an “empty balloon.”
Gradual change in the quality of matches
For his part, the national football coach and lecturer at the International and Asian Federations, Abdullah Hassan, said that any professional club sets goals that it seeks to achieve during the sports season, and that based on these goals, the preparation program is developed, pointing out that there are clubs that rely on gradual progression in the type of friendly matches, while there are other clubs that rely on choosing difficult friendly matches within their preparation program.
“There are teams like Al Wasl, Sharjah, Al Ain, Al Nasr and others that played friendly matches against teams with a high technical level, because these teams will participate in external tournaments, and therefore they need strong friendly matches to implement the technical ideas of the technical staff. On the other hand, there are other teams that are satisfied with facing modest teams that match their ambitions at the local level,” he added.
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