Pitso’s Abha moves out of relegation after Al Nassr drubbing

Pitso Mosimane’s Abha Club defeated Al Fateh 2-1 at home over the weekend in the Saudi Pro League (SPL), escaping the relegation zone after losing badly to Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr 8-0.

Last Tuesday, Portugal’s legendary Ronaldo scored a hat-trick to lead his team to a decisive victory over Abha.

At Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Sports City Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, Abha defeated Al Fateh, who were ranked seventh, thanks to two goals from Polish striker Grzegorz Krychowiak.

Abha Standing

With seven games remaining, Battling Abha, who have earned an outstanding 11 points in eight games under Mosimane, climbed up to 15th place in the eighteen-team SPL, keeping them out of the bottom three relegation zones.

The squad won with almost any possession, and the coach justified the way his team played against Fateh.

“The players gave me their heart on the field,” the coach was quoted as saying via iDiski Times.

“We succeeded in proving our character with our success, returning from a harsh loss by eight goals to a distinguished victory.

“I’m trying with all my might to work hard, but I don’t have more players with special qualities.

“I do not have Sadio Mané [who also plays for Al-Nassr] or Cristiano Ronaldo. I can only work with the elements I have.

“The performance has improved since our arrival, and we hope to continue this work to stay away from the relegation zone.”

Al Fateh Standing

Mosimane took over Abha on January 11, with the club in 17th place on 14 points with four wins and two draws from 19 games. They had not won in seven matches—six of those defeats.

Former Mamelodi Sundowns and Al Ahli coach Mosimane and his South African technical staff have steered Abha to three wins, two draws, and two defeats in their last seven league games to sit on 25 points from 27 matches.