I am no magician to change it: Al-Hamdan's slip-ups implicate Donis, so who is to blame?

Al-Hamdan lasted 83 minutes, but his decision-making let him down time and again. He squandered a clear-cut chance at the very start, latching onto a magical pass from Humam Al-Hammami that sent him one-on-one with the Kuwait goalkeeper. Rather than find the net, he somehow wasted it with his left foot.

Other passes cried out to be exploited with the right runs, a bit of shielding, keeping the defenders at arm's length. He managed none of it, and several easy chances went begging for "the Falcons".

On 83 minutes, Donis pulled Al-Hamdan and handed the chance to Firas Al-Buraikan. The Al-Nassr star trudged off to criticism and jeers from the stands.

Al-Buraikan, by contrast, made an instant impression. He buzzed with movement inside and outside the box, drifting to the left flank and opening up space for runners to storm into from deep.

Georgios Donis, the Greek in charge of the Saudi Arabia national team, defended Al-Hamdan's poor form at his press conference. "He sometimes plays and at other times does not," he said.

"I am not a magician to change what Al-Hamdan is going through with his club, but he remains an important player for us and certainly gives us added value and strength," he continued.

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Al-Hamdan can't escape blame for the string of chances he wasted, nor for some poor decisions in the final third. But there's another way to look at it.

His strength lies in playing directly behind the striker, as a second forward. From there he breaks into the box and exploits the gaps between the two centre-backs when the first striker drifts out of the area.

That is what sets Al-Hamdan apart, and it has been clear from his spell with Al-Nassr last season right up to now. He's a mobile player who runs into space well, and he can threaten goals with powerful strikes, as he did in the recent match between Al-Nassr and Al-Khaleej.

Using him as an out-and-out striker, though, is an unproductive idea. It won't give the Saudi national team the strength it needs, unlike Abdullah Al-Salem, Firas Al-Buraikan and Saleh Al-Shehri, for example, names capable of playing well in the main striker role.

Dolezaj should have known this and made the change. Pull the play back or bring on a striker, then adjust the shape by returning Al-Hamdan to his role as a second forward.