Al-Ettifaq are enjoying life under the leadership of Steven Gerrard, as they have been flawless in their first two games of the 2023/24 Saudi Pro League season.
Gerrard has led Al-Ettifaq to two wins out of two in the Saudi Pro League, defeating Al Nassr by 2-1 and Al Hazem by 2-0.
The Dammam-based club appointed Steven Gerrard on July 3, 2023, and he has been impressive in handling the Saudi Arabian team.
Despite seemingly having communication issues when he arrived at Al Ettifaq, the 43-year-old has been able to galvanize the side to produce impressive results.
Al Ettifaq finished 7th in the Saudi Pro League last term, losing 13 games, drawing 7, and winning 10.
They currently sit 3rd in the Saudi Pro League, behind Al Ittihad and Al Ahli, who have also amassed 6 points.
Al Ettifaq have also made needed injections this summer, signing Jordan Henderson, Jack Hendry, Moussa Dembélé, Hamdan Al-Shammrani, and Mohammed Al-Dawsari.
Steven Gerrard’s side are also interested in signing Mohammed Salah from Liverpool.
They have other top teams to compete with, but it appears they are much more experienced and competitive than they were last term.
That can be attributed to the tactical brilliance of Steven Gerrard, which has shown fort in their first two matches.
Al Ettifaq don’t have the financial muscle that clubs like Al Nassr, Al Hilal, Al Ittihad, and Al Ahli have but they are making do with what they have at their disposal.
It might be hard to win the Saudi Pro League title, but continental football isn’t far-fetched.
Steven Gerrard guides Al-Ettifaq to two wins out of two in the 2023/24 Saudi Pro League season
In a video shared by the club, the players were seen in bubbling spirits, enjoying their rich vein of form.
The video shared on Instagram was captioned: “Gerrard has become everyone’s favorite at the Etty 🤷”
“Only two games later” 😅🙌
Steven Gerrard was dismissed by Aston Villa in October 2022 following a run of bad results.
The Birmingham-based side managed only four victories in their last 22 league games under Gerrard and that forced the management of the club to fire him.
However, fortunes have seemingly changed for the better at Al Ettifaq, with two impressive wins under his belt.
Before he joined Aston Villa, he had a pretty successful spell at Rangers, wrestling the Scottish Premiership title off Celtic in his last full season at the club.
He went unbeaten throughout the season, including defeating Scottish giants Celtic in both league meetings during the season.
Rangers conceded 13 goals, amassing 102 points and winning 32 games in 38 league matches.
He has an above-average managerial record, having won 140 matches, drawing 50 games, and losing 45 matches in 235 games managed.
The Liverpool legend has a win percentage of 59.4% in his 6-year managerial stint.
