Rodgers hails 'special' derby win but quashes Al Qadsiah title talk
A first Eastern Derby experience proved a memorable one for Brendan Rodgers.
And for all the right reasons.
His Al Qadsiah side, unbeaten in their 14 Roshn Saudi League matches since his appointment, pushed aside Al Ettifaq 4-0 in Dammam on Monday night to take home local bragging rights.
It was a tale of two blitzes, the hosts two up within seven minutes at Prince Mohammed Bin Fahd Stadium and then rounding off the result with another brace in injury-time.
Nahitan Nandez grabbed the opener to continue his fine form. Ghana starlet Christopher Bonsu Baah got the second. Julian Quinones struck late on for a 22nd goal of the RSL season to move to within one of Ivan Toney in the race for the golden boot.
Moments later, namesake Julian Weigl produced the goal of the night.
Derby delight secured, Al Qadsiah’s title charge sustained. Even with Al Hilal and Al Nassr still to play in this rescheduled Matchweek 10, the East Coast club sit fourth, three points of the summit.
Rodgers, used to some of football’s most fierce cross-city rivalries - see Glasgow Celtic versus Glasgow Rangers, Liverpool versus Everton - now has another under his belt.
And, understandably, it felt pretty nice.
“I thought we were so good in the game,” Rodgers said. “We were playing our second game in four days, but our intensity, especially in the first 30 minutes, our technical level, and also against a very good team who score a lot of goals and can give you problems.
“But, defensively, we were pressing. Our aggression was really good. We gave away only two shots on target and one of those was from near the halfway line. And then we created so many opportunities. The football was really good.
“And, of course, it's a derby game. This always makes it special. So fantastic performance and really pleased with the team.”
To echo Rodgers, the team were excellent. As they have been since he was installed in December as Michel's replacement with a remit to deliver a more attacking brand of football. Safe to say he's done that.
“I always say that the team I'm trying to build here is a team that starts very fast and finishes very strong,” Rodgers said. “To be able to do that, you need to have a strong physicality. And our mantra is that we keep going from the first whistle to the final whistle.
“And we see so many games now where we can score early and we score late on in games. So this is the mentality that we want to create.
“But, of course, you need the players to be convinced, and you see the effort they are putting into the games. What we’re creating is a football team that is really difficult to play against.
“I also say to our players: teams can analyse us, teams can watch the videos of us, but it's not until they step onto the field against us that they feel the real intensity of our team.
“And this is what we are seeing at the moment - a team that is fast, aggressive and hungry to score goals and not concede goals. But as always, there will be areas to improve. But overall, I'm so happy with the performance.”
Rodgers must be rather content, too, with Al Qadsiah’s position in the table. A third of the way through the 23rd round of the 2025-26 season, and three points separate Al Ahli in first place to the Al Khobar club in fourth. For sure, Al Qadsiah are right in the mix.
Not that Rodgers will be drawn into any title talk.
“Win the next game,” he replied with a smile when asked about targets for the remainder of the campaign. “In modern football, you can only look to the next game.
“I am only thinking of performance and looking to perform in our next game and then we go on to the next game. There's so many games left to play, but I can only concentrate on our team and continue in our development as a team.
“Win the next one. That is my only ambition.”
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