Al-Saqqa has no qualms over cup defeat

السبت، 10 مايو 2008 - 01:37

كتب : Hatem Maher

Genclerbirligi defender Abdul Zaher Al-Saqqa has no qualms over his side's heartbreaking defeat to Kayserispor in the Turkish Cup final.

Kayserispor clinched the title when they beat Genclerbirligi 11-10 in an extraordinary penalty shoot-out as the game ended goalless after extra time.

Al-Saqqa himself had a chance to make it a night to remember for Gencler but his spot-kick was blocked by Bulgarian keeper Dimitar Ivankov.

Nevertheless, the Egyptian defender, who has been snubbed by national team coach Hassan Shehata, has a clear conscience.

"The keeper was lucky to dive the right way. Success in penalties heavily depends on luck. Many stars in the world wasted penalties," Al-Saqqa told FilGoal.com.

"I'm not sad that we lost the title because we did our best. The team exerted relentless efforts but at the end Kayserispor were the ones who won.

"Gencler coach and president congratulated us on our displays and stressed that reaching the cup final is an achievement, given our league struggles."

Gencler risked being relegated to the second division but managed to guarantee their top-flight status last week despite a 3-2 defeat to Fenerbahce.

"The cup final was very difficult for us. We were very exhausted as we faced Fenerbahce in a crucial match just three days before playing Kayserispor."

"On the other hand, Kayserispor rested several regulars in order to have them fresh for the cup final," Al-Saqqa added.

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