Defending champion Al-Shabab faces Al-Ittihad in a repeat of last year's King's Cup for Champions final at the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Friday. King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, will patronize the match, which is scheduled to start at 8:45 P.M. Al-Shabab beat Al-Ittihad 3-1 to win the 2008 trophy. Al-Shabab coach Enzo Torres has an enterprising young squad which has put on a steady performance throughout the year. The club finished fourth in the Saudi Premier League and has secured a passage to the AFC Champions League knockout stage after topping in Group B. Enzo's team is also assured a place in next year's AFC Champions League since both the winner and the runnerup of the King's Cup receive berths in the event. The Argentinean coach is relying on Ahmed and Abdu Atif to operate the midfield area alongside Brazilian Marcello Camacho, who has signed contract to remain with the team for the next two years. Saudi Premier League top scorer Nasser Al-Shamrani and his partner Abdul Aziz Al-Saran are the other Al-Shabab winning cards in the front. Qatari midfielder Talal Al-Baloushi and defender Zaid Al-Moualad were the only players to miss the last training session. Al-Ittihad, meanwhile, arrived in Riyadh Thursday. It has had two closed training sessions in Jeddah. The good news for the Jeddah side was that the team's skipper Mohammed Noor, missed Al-Hazm clash due to a back injury, is back. Al-Ittihad, two-time AFC Champions League winner, has also secured a spot in the next competition. Al-Ittihad coach Calderon has no worries over injuries or suspensions. The Jeddah side is depending on its strong defense with a couple of effective strikers. Young international strikers Naif Hazazi and Moroccan Hicham Aboucherouane will again be a threat to Al-Shabab after proving themselves in the recent matches. The Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) has allocated SR9 million in cash prize for the top four teams in the competition. Al-Hilal finishes third JEDDAH – Al-Hilal edged Al-Hazm 5-4 in a penalty shoot-out to clinch the third spot in the King's Cup in Al-Rass Thursday. The match was the last for Al-Hilal coach Abdul Latif Al-Hussaini. According to reports Marseille's coach Belgian Eric Gerets has signed a euro 250,000-a-month deal with Al-Hilal. He will start his work next season.
