Former Malta coach set to be offered new contract by Saudi Arabian Premier League club
Ray Farrugia is a central figure for the future of Saudi Arabian women’s team Al-Ula and is set to be offered fresh terms to continue the team’s rise in the Premier Division in the coming years, club CEO Waleed Muath revealed to the Times of Malta in an exclusive interview.
Farrugia took over the reins of the Saudi Arabian women’s team at the start of last November with the team having just three points after the opening three matches.
However, since Farrugia and his assistant Brian Bartolo, started their work the team has gone through an impressive transformation.
Playing in their first season back in the Saudi Arabian top-flight, the team not only managed to stave off relegation but managed to end the campaign in impressive form as three wins in a row propelled the team to fifth place in the standings.
Speaking to the Times of Malta, Muath said that Farrugia’s arrival with Al-Ula was a huge blessing for the team.
“Ray Farrugia has done a fantastic job with us during the past few months,” Muath said.
“Since he started his job here he has always given his 100 per cent to the team’s cause and he approaches challenges in the right way. He managed to transform the team into a very solid outfit and led us to fifth place in the final standings.
“I just wonder how much more we could achieve this season had Ray came at the start of the season.”
Asked what led him to choose Ray Farrugia as his new head coach, Muath said that he was impressed by his qualities for several years and had been targeting the former Malta national coach’s services since 2016.
“I got to know Ray Farrugia through a mutual friend,” Muath said.
“I heard a lot about his qualities and someone I trust encouraged me to approach him.
“I heard a lot about his qualities since 2016 but for one reason or another there was never the right circumstances for him to accept and come here.
“However, when last year I approached him Ray said ‘yes’ to our offer and it was one of the best decisions I made.”
Muath said that he hopes this is just the start of Ray Farrugia’s career in Saudi Arabia as he believes that he is the right man to lead the team in the coming years.
“I followed him a lot during his time as Malta national team coach,” Muath said.
“He is a very experienced coach and I love his football philosophy. He is a very passionate coach who loves to do his job in the best possible way.
“He is quite unique in the way he manages the team and he is someone you can easily talk to. Ray’s excellent communication skills have been a major factor behind our team’s improvement this season as the players felt at ease with him at the helm.”
Muath is an affirmed administrator in Saudi Arabia and has some remarkable football experience on his CV.
A few years back he was chairman of Saudi top side Al Ahli and when he stepped down he went on to work at the Saudi Arabian football federation before he was handed a role at the Ministry for Sport.
In 2023, he took over the reins at Al-Ula and he is determined to help the club win major honours in the Saudi Arabian Premier League.
“Our goal is very simple, we want Al-Ula to become a major force in women’s football not only in Saudi Arabia but also in the Middle East,” Muath said.
“I believe that we have all the ingredients to reach our objective. I am sure that in the next five years we can fulfil our ambition and we have a football strategy in place which will help us reach our goals.
“I firmly believe that in the coming years we will be able to win a Cup and then we can target to win the Saudi Arabian championship. But to achieve that you need to have the right technical programme in place.
“The ambition and drive is there and we will do all we can to fulfil our goals.”
Muath has a lot of contacts in the football world and during the past months he has been scouring the globe to find the right partners to boost his club on all areas.
A few months ago he signed a co-operational agreement with Serie A side Como.
“Our partnership with Como was a commercial one,” Muath said.
“It’s a very important agreement to boost the profile of our club.
“But I am looking beyond this as my goal is to find a strategic partner that can assist us from a technical level. I am confident that in the next couple of months we will be in a position to make an announcement.”
Al-Ula have already shown their ambition to succeed with the capture of some quality players in their squad, namely Bosnia internationals Melisa Hasanbegovic and Selma Kapetanovic but the most high-profile name in the squad is without doubt former Olympique Lyon, Arsenal and France international goalkeeper Sarah Bouhaddi.
“I believe that high-profile players will help our home-grown talent to step up their level,” the Al-Ula CEO said.
“Having top quality foreign players plying their trade in our championship is crucial not only to improve Al-Ula but Saudi Arabian football in general, as our goal is to see our national team become stronger and stronger.”
Looking at the future of Al-Ula, the club CEO said that the club has a bright future ahead.
“We have a very ambitious project on our hands,” he said.
“The club has set up a high performance programme while at the same time we are focused on boosting our academy.
“We are also planning to build a new stadium with a capacity of 11,000 seats.
“Things look bright and we will continue to work hard to push the club in the right path.”
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