Postecoglou praises Al-Nassr’s character after Al-Ittihad defeat

Ange Postecoglou said Al-Nassr were the dominant side for most of their 2-1 defeat by Al-Ittihad in the Roshn Saudi League, claiming their opponents offered little attacking threat beyond the opening 15 minutes.

The Australian manager was speaking after Saturday’s Clasico, which saw Al-Ittihad take all three points in the fifth round of the competition. Despite the result, Postecoglou believed Al-Nassr created the clearer opportunities and showed the character required to recover from a difficult start.

“What I saw in the game was that after the 15th minute, there was only one team creating chances, and that was Al-Nassr,” Postecoglou said at his post-match news conference.

“What our players did last season and this season has shown that they have character.”

Al-Nassr struggled to impose themselves during the early stages, but Postecoglou praised the way his players responded as the match progressed. He said every fixture presented different circumstances and accepted that a team’s concentration could dip at certain points, particularly against an opponent with considerable energy.

“Every game is a different event. The opponent today had great energy and sometimes your focus is lower,” he said.

“If we look at every game separately, the reasons are different in each one. When we watch our team’s reaction each time, it gets better.”

Postecoglou felt the balance of play changed significantly after half-time. While Al-Ittihad held on to their lead, the Al-Nassr manager argued that the home side did not create genuine danger in the second half, whereas his team found several opportunities to equalise and potentially turn the match around.

“In the second half, Al-Ittihad did not have any real chances, while we got forward at least five times,” he said.

“If we had scored the equaliser, things would have been different. The players did what they had to do and I cannot ask for more from them because they gave everything.”

The Al-Nassr manager also defended his players’ finishing, saying their attempts had not been wasted through poor decision-making. Instead, he pointed to the performance of Al-Ittihad goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic, who made the saves required to preserve his side’s advantage.

“The chances we had were saved by the Al-Ittihad goalkeeper. Our players did not waste them; this is football and these things happen,” Postecoglou said.

“We also could not deliver the ball properly from our corners.”

Despite expressing his frustration at the defeat, Postecoglou said the second half had offered a clearer indication of what Al-Nassr were capable of producing. He believed his side could have scored several times if they had been more fortunate in front of goal.

“It is frustrating to lose. We did not start the game well, especially in the first 15 minutes, but in the second half we saw our real ability,” he said.

“We could have scored many goals, but we were unlucky.”