Saudi Arabia: Christophe Galtier not happy over the performance of club
There is no disguising the
difficulties NEOM Sports
Club are facing right now. A solitary win from their last seven Roshn Saudi League
matches—and four defeats in the past five—has left the ambitious top-flight
newcomers languishing in the bottom half of the table deeper into the 2025–26
season than they ever anticipated.
A goalless draw with Al Ettifaq last
week brought only NEOM SC’s second clean sheet of the campaign, while a total
of 21 goals scored is the lowest return among the league’s top 10 sides. For a
club ushering in a new era in Saudi Arabia’s north-west, expectations were far
higher—and head coach Christophe Galtier is fully aware of the predicament.
“I am not happy because we repeat
the same mistakes game after game,” the Frenchman admitted after the recent
defeat to Al Ahli.
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When reminded that NEOM SC have yet
to beat a team placed above them in the table at the time of kick-off, Galtier
was brutally honest.
“When you have these results, this
is our level,” he said. “If we can’t win, then this is our level at the moment.
I don’t accept that, but it is the reality. We have to work, we have to
progress, and maybe I need to leave some players out.
“Even if it’s a foreigner or a big
investment, I don’t care. This is football everywhere in the world. It’s not
about names, it’s about attitude on the pitch. We keep making the same
mistakes. Two games ago it was the same, and when the squad is complete with
more players, I will take decisions.”
Galtier continued by stressing that
his responsibility is to make tough calls if results are to improve.
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“My job is to make decisions—the
right decisions—to see my team winning. Maybe we lack some experienced players,
but we also have players with big experience. If the players don’t know me, they
will know me. Some may think it’s easy to play in the RSL, but it’s a difficult
league and they have to understand that.”
The message was unmistakable—a clear
challenge to his squad ahead of Friday’s home clash with relegation-threatened
Damac, where a response will be demanded.
Yet, while NEOM SC’s struggles are
evident, the wider context matters. This is the club’s first season in the
Saudi top flight, following significant squad turnover to meet the demands of a
higher level. Growing pains were always likely, especially when competing with
established heavyweights such as Al Hilal, Al Nassr and Al Ahli.
Even so, NEOM SC would have hoped to
be pushing for at least a top-six finish, perhaps emulating Al Qadsiah’s
impressive run last season. For the opening third of the campaign, they were
firmly in the mix—until the current downturn halted their momentum.
What remains clear from both
recruitment and rhetoric is that NEOM SC is a long-term project, not one
defined solely by 2025–26. Summer signing Alexandre Lacazette provided a
marquee statement of intent, but he arrived alongside a largely youthful group
still developing at senior level.
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Luciano Rodríguez was just 22 when
he joined, French prospects Saimon Bouabre and Nathan Zézé are 19 and 20
respectively, while Ivorian midfielder Amadou Koné is also only 20. The
potential is obvious, but consistency is often elusive with young players.
Indeed, NEOM SC boast the second-youngest average starting XI in the league, at
26 years and 187 days—behind only Al Ahli.
That inexperience has shown most
clearly after the break. Galtier has repeatedly pointed to a pattern of strong
first halves followed by second-half drop-offs. Against Al Hilal in Matchweek
16, NEOM SC led 1–0 at halftime before slipping to a 2–1 defeat—an
all-too-familiar storyline.
The statistics reinforce the issue:
68% of their goals conceded have come in the second half, with half arriving in
the final 30 minutes. For a coach who has won Ligue 1 titles with Paris
Saint-Germain, these are warning signs he knows well.
Galtier has promised “tough love” to
spark a turnaround. Starting against Damac on Friday, the challenge now lies
with the players to heed that call and begin steering NEOM SC back on course.
Source: https://onefootball.com/
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