Fahd Al-Harifi, former Al-Nassr star, sent a strong message to French coach Hervé Renard, the technical director of the Saudi national team, warning of the lack of a clear vision before entering the Asian playoff matches qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.
The Saudi national team played two friendly matches this September, where they won against North Macedonia 2-1, before drawing with the Czech Republic 1-1.
Al-Harifi criticized Renard’s performance, saying: “We had hoped to qualify directly without entering playoff calculations, but I’m not very optimistic. It’s true that the team won and drew, scoring three goals, but what worries me is the coach’s lack of new ideas.”
He added: “Renard used 56 players during the qualifiers despite leading the team for a long time and knowing their levels well, so what’s the need for continuous experiments? We need stability in the lineup.”
He continued: “There’s no clear strategy for building a strong team, we’re still relying on luck and chance at a crucial moment in the qualifiers.”
The Al-Nassr legend concluded his statements saying: “It’s not reasonable that Renard doesn’t know the players’ capabilities until now. We’re at a black and white stage, we must qualify to preserve our football history.”
Six Asian teams that finished third and fourth in the third round of qualifications participate in the playoff: Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iraq, Oman, UAE, Indonesia.
Saudi Arabia and Qatar will host the playoff matches, where the Green Falcons start their journey against Indonesia on October 8, 2025, and conclude it by facing Iraq on October 14.
The top team in each group qualifies directly for the World Cup finals, while the second-place teams face each other in home and away matches during November 2025, with the winner advancing to the global playoff qualifying for the World Cup.