DAMMAM: Al-Ettifaq manager Steven Gerrard has called for his players to step up to the mark in search of goals ahead of their Roshn Saudi League match vs. Al-Raed this weekend.
Al-Ettifaq go into the clash against the team at the bottom of the table on Saturday with limited striking options, after Gerrard confirmed that star striker Moussa Dembele will be “missing for a few weeks” after undergoing a “small surgery on his knee.”
With Swedish striker Robin Quaison also missing for Ettifaq’s King’s Cup defeat to Al-Nassr during the week, Gerrard may once again go with former Leicester City and Everton winger Demarai Gray leading the line.
Whoever plays vs. Al-Raed, however, has the chance to make history at the opening of the new Al-Ettifaq Club stadium on Saturday night (9 p.m. KSA).
Gerrard said: “Without key players in the final third, it’s challenging at the moment — there’s no Moussa, no Robin Quaison, no Vitinho. We asked young (midfielder) Hamed Al-Ghamdi to jump up a line on Tuesday. We played Demarai Gray out of position to give us some speed in attack.”
“We need other players to step up,” he added. “When we get players back, we will be more aggressive. We will be more dangerous. Until then, other players need to step up. That starts against Al-Raed.”
Al-Ettifaq may have exited the King’s Cup at the quarter-final stage, but the team’s battling performance in the 1-0 extra-time loss against Al-Nassr gave Gerrard great encouragement.
Having called for “a reaction” from his players following the home defeat to Al-Riyadh on Oct. 22, Al-Ettifaq responded by beating Al-Wehda 3-2 and putting in a strong showing against Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr.
Gerrard, whose side go into the Roshn Saudi League matchday 12 weekend in seventh position in the table, said: “I’m very proud of the players. There was effort, commitment, desire. Al-Nassr showed us big respect on Tuesday night by playing their full team and we knew it was going to be a big challenge for the players but everyone stood up and was brave. They really played for the fans and gave everything that they’ve got. We know why we’re not as good as we should be in the front line right now. But in terms of what the players have given me, I’m ever so proud. We now need to continue that.”
