NASHVILLE: In Nashville, the US’ self-proclaimed Music City, Al-Hilal’s new coach Simone Inzaghi is hoping to fine-tune an Al-Hilal forward line that has performed worryingly off-key so far at this month’s FIFA Club World Cup.
With only a Ruben Neves penalty to show for almost 200 minutes of football in the US, the Riyadh side face Mexico’s CF Pachuca tonight knowing only a win will do if they are to progress to the round of 16.
The Blues will need to find their rhythm.
For all the praise received following the statement 1-1 draw with Real Madrid in Miami, it is Sunday’s dull stalemate with Red Bull Salzburg that is freshest in mind.
The statistics do not make for pleasant reading: across the two matches, Hilal managed 31 shots, but only six hit the target. Discount the penalty and it equates to six shots for every one on target — hardly in harmony with a team of Hilal’s wealth of ambition.
Nonetheless, Inzaghi was generous with his praise for the players’ effort after the scoreless draw.
He confirmed in his pre-match press conference yesterday that striker Aleksandar Mitrovic remains sidelined, though center-back Hassan Al-Tambakti trained as normal despite hobbling off against Salzburg.
While the front three is likely to remain unchanged with Marcos Leonardo operating between Salem Al-Dawsari and Malcom, the Hilal bench might have one new face should Inzaghi need a spark in attack.
Kaio Cesar has proclaimed himself fully recovered from the hamstring injury that has kept him out since May 16. On Wednesday, the 21-year-old winger trained with the squad before being pulled aside and taken through his paces by muscle reconditioning expert Claudio Spicciariello.
The Brazilian told Arab News he is “100 percent ready” should Inzaghi call upon him.
“I am happy to be finished with the treatment and excited to be able to help my team again,” said Kaio, who has six goal involvements since joining Hilal in January from Portugal’s Vitoria Guimaraes.
“To start the match, I think it’s difficult because I’ve been out for a while, but I can play some minutes and hopefully make a difference.
“I’m ready, so it depends on the coach now, but I am with my mind in a very good place, lots of positive thoughts, and ready to help my team with goals, assists, running, and doing whatever I can to make sure we progress.”
Sitting in third place in Group H with two points, two behind Madrid and Salzburg who also play each other tonight, the result of that match will determine how many goals Hilal need to progress.
But nothing less than victory against Pachuca will suffice if the 2021 AFC Asian Champions League winners are to reach the round of 16 — a feat no other Asian or African team has managed Stateside, with all seven other representatives from the AFC and CAF already eliminated.
“Firstly, we are only worried about ourselves and our game — we need to do our job first and then we can look at the other result,” Kaio said when asked if the result in the Madrid-Salzburg match will play on the players’ minds and add extra pressure.
“Getting the win we need first of all, that is my motivation. That is our only concern. The pressure is already big because the club is big and the responsibility is always to win every match.
“Now the pressure is even more because we need to get the victory, but we have a lot of big players who are prepared for this type of moment.”
One such player is midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic. The stylish Serb has been a key part of Hilal’s success since joining from Lazio in the summer of 2023.
And his role is expected to gain even more importance under Inzaghi, with whom he shone in Rome between 2016 and 2021. He said he cannot fault his teammates for the 0-0 draw with Salzburg and that they will continue on the same path that has brought them this far — with one key difference.
“We have played two good games so far,” he said. “The last game, we played very well and were just missing a goal to win the game, but this now being the last game of the group stage, we will do everything we can to win.
“I’ve said it before, but I am happy how we went in these first two games and we will go the same way until the end, but of course we need to score more goals.”
Pachuca cannot be underestimated. They have netted in both their matches so far, and while ultimately losing both, they have enough in attack to cause problems, especially in 19-year-old Elias Montiel.
The last time the reigning Concacaf Champions League winners faced an Arab side at a FIFA tournament was in last year’s Challenger Cup in Qatar. On that occasion, following a 0-0 draw with Al-Ahly, Pachuca triumphed on penalties.
When the music stops tonight, there will be no penalties: If Hilal fail to score — draw or not — they will be heading home. No encore.
