Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Riyadh: New French coach Antoine Kombouaré of ACL quarter-finalists Al Hilal has prioritised the continental championship as the ‘main target’ for the silverware in his first year at the Riyadh club.
Kombouaré, who was without a job after Paris Saint Germain’s mega rich Qatari owners sacked him in November 2011 in favour of former AC Milan boss Carlo Ancelotti despite PSG leading the French League at that time, joined the 13-time Saudi League champions in June.
"The team needs some time to be ready for the new season, and we will be there on time,” Kombouaré was quoted by local media. “Our main target is ACL", he said after the club finished ‘successful’ training camp in Europe.
"I am happy to work with Al Hilal, and I came here to win the titles. We are still looking for the fourth foreign player to be a striker," the Frenchmen hinted at Hilal’s target of adding more fire power before the Saudi football season starts on August 3 with Hilal playing their first league match against Hajer away from home.
Earlier, Kombouaré had revealed that the stature of Al Hilal in the West Region had prompted him to opt for a move to Asia.
After joining Hilal in June, Kombouaré has already signed Senegal defender Abdelquader Mangane from French outfit Stade Rennais to replace outgoing Osama Hosawi.
Al Hilal will take on Ulsan Hyundai of Korea Republic in the last eight of this year's edition of the AFC Champions League. Despite being one of the top clubs of West Asia, Hilal’s best performance in the ACL came in 2010 when they reached the 2010 semi-final.
The first leg of the continent’s premier club competition quarter-finals will take place on September 19 with Ulsan hosting the two-time Asian Club Championship winners before the Saudis entertain the Koreans on October 3 at Prince Faisal Bin Fahd Stadium.