São Paulo – Brazilian head coach Augusto Sabbatini (picture above, to the right) began his work this week with the men’s volleyball team Al Nassr Saudi Club, in Saudi Arabia. Sabbatini, who has worked as a volleyball coach in over 20 countries, is taking over the Al Nassr aiming at a championship, with the team in a five-year trophy drought.
“I came here to do my best,” he said in an interview to ANBA from Riyadh. The Brazilian coach is fond of the idea of experiencing a different culture such as the Saudi one and, despite having already travelled to 40 countries due to the sport, he didn’t know the Arab country. “The team is in a five-year championship drought and I can change that, it adds to my experience,” he said.
Sabbatini has 16 players on his roster, including a player from Cuba and one from the Dominican Republic that he brought with him. This Tuesday (04), the coach had already given two practices to the team. Under Sabbatini, the team will practice for two hours every day, expect on Fridays, which is a sacred and rest day in the Arab country.
The coach’s program has a focus on discipline. “Discipline to me is the flagship, if you’re not focused you won’t perform,” he said. Another goal is to improve the player’s conditioning, working on traits such as agility, quickness and endurance, alongside the players’ skills, their ball handling.
Sabbatini signed his contract with the Saudi team on Monday (03) and has already talked to the Al Nassr Saudi Club’s general manager, Mohamed Almesbil (picture above, to the left), about the team’s expectations. The coach’s contract with the team is for the 2018-2019 season and it runs until May of next year.
The first tournament that the team will enter with Sabbatini as its coach will be the National League. If the team qualifies, it will go to the Gulf Cup in 2019. The squad should also compete in the Saudi Arabia Cup and in a tournament between the season’s six better-ranked teams.
Before he signed with the Al Nassr Saudi Club, the Brazilian coached, for a short time, around three months, the Curaçao men’s and women’s beach volleyball national teams. Prior to that, the worked in Morocco until the end of April of this year. Throughout his career, Sabbatini has worked with teams from Qatar and Kuwait, and with India, Trinidad and Tobago, Pakistan, Nigeria, Vietnam, Myanmar and Caribbean countries national teams.
August Sabbatini was born in Taquaritinga, 340 km from São Paulo. Among his achievements are the second place at the 2010 South Asian Games as the head coach of the men’s volleyball national team of Pakistan, the championship at the 2006 South Asian Games as the head coach of the men’s volleyball national team of India, and the championship of the 2004-2005 National League of Qatar as assistant coach of the men’s volleyball team Al-Arabi Sports Club.
Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
