Abbas Saad

{{Infobox football biography

| name = Abbas Saad

| image = Abbas_Saad.jpg

| caption = Saad in 2009

| fullname =

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1967|12|1|df=y}}

| birth_place = Baalbek, Lebanon

| height = 1.78 m

| currentclub =

| position = Attacking midfielder

| youthyears1 =

| youthclubs1 =

| years1 = 1985

| clubs1 = Sydney City

| caps1 = 14

| goals1 = 2

| years2 = 1986–1990

| clubs2 = Sydney Olympic

| caps2 = 110

| goals2 = 38

| years3 = 1990

| clubs3 = Singapore FA

| caps3 = 22

| goals3 = 11

| years4 = 1991–1992

| clubs4 = Johor

| caps4 = 40

| goals4 = 16

| years5 = 1993

| clubs5 = Sydney Olympic

| caps5 = 12

| goals5 = 1

| years6 = 1993–1994

| clubs6 = Singapore FA

| caps6 = 26

| goals6 = 12

| years7 = 1996–1997

| clubs7 = Sydney Olympic

| caps7 = 12

| goals7 = 1

| years8 = 1997–1999

| clubs8 = Sydney United

| caps8 = 27

| goals8 = 9

| years9 = 1999–2000

| clubs9 = Northern Spirit

| caps9 = 13

| goals9 = 3

| years10 = 2000

| clubs10 = Canterbury-Marrickville

| caps10 = 11

| goals10 = 6

| years11 = 2001

| clubs11 = Fraser Park

| caps11 = 10

| goals11 = 2

| years12 = 2002

| clubs12 = Auburn United

| caps12 = 10

| goals12 = 5

| years13 = 2002–2003

| clubs13 = St George Saints

| caps13 = 11

| goals13 = 4

| years14 = 2003

| clubs14 = Belmore Hercules

| caps14 = 9

| goals14 = 4

| caps15 = 10

| caps16 = 21

| totalcaps = 358

| totalgoals = 126

| nationalyears1 = 1992–1998

| nationalteam1 = Australia

| nationalcaps1 = 4

| nationalgoals1 = 0

| manageryears1 = 2018–2021

| managerclubs1 = Sydney Olympic

| manageryears2 = 2022

| managerclubs2 = Bonnyrigg White Eagles

| manageryears3 = 2023

| managerclubs3 = Central Coast Mariners Academy

| manageryears4 = 2023

| managerclubs4 = Central Coast Mariners (interim)

}}

Abbas Saad ({{langx|ar|عباس سعد}}; born 1 December 1967) is a soccer manager and former player. Born in Lebanon, Saad played for the Australia national team.

Club career

Saad began his playing career in 1985 at Sydney City, before moving to Sydney Olympic.{{Cite news |last=Lee |first=David |date=15 May 2021 |title=Football: I just get on with life, says ex-Lion Abbas Saad, as he recounts the ups and downs |url=https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/football/football-i-just-get-on-with-life-says-ex-lion-abbas-saad-as-he-recounts-the-ups-and |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20240421135335/https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/football/football-i-just-get-on-with-life-says-ex-lion-abbas-saad-as-he-recounts-the-ups-and |archive-date=2024-04-21 |access-date=2024-12-18 |work=The Straits Times |language=en}} In 1990, he was awarded the Joe Marston Medal for the being the Player of the Match in the NSL final in which Sydney Olympic beat the Marconi Stallions 2–0.

He then played in the Malaysian League for Johor and Singapore in the early 1990s. He was a key member of teams which won the League and Malaysia Cup double with both Johor in 1991 and Singapore in 1994.

In the 1994 Malaysia Cup final, Saad scored a hat-trick in Singapore's 4–0 victory over Pahang.{{cite web|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1309&dat=19950602&id=ablOAAAAIBAJ&pg=5491,671340|title=Abbas: Vana offered to pay for goals|newspaper=New Straits Times|first=Iris|last=Maniam|date=2 June 1995|access-date=9 December 2014}} Initially offered a one year contract, Saad was offered two years on his contract after the Malaysia Cup win.{{Cite news |last=Dorai |first=Joe |date=24 December 1994 |title=Abbas, Moore given 2-year contracts |url=https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/digitised/article/stoverseas19941224-1.2.7.1.2 |access-date=17 December 2024 |work=The Straits Times |pages=8 |edition=Weekly Overseas |via=NewspaperSG}}

=Conviction for match-fixing in Singapore=

In 1995, Saad was charged with match-fixing in Singapore. He has always maintained he was innocent of this charge. During his trial, he admitted that he had been approached by his teammate Michal Váňa (a Czech player who was also charged with match-fixing but who jumped bail and left Singapore before he could be tried), who asked Saad to help him win certain matches by large margins during the 1994 season as Váňa was betting on the outcome of the games. However Saad stated that he had refused to help Váňa try to fix the scores of any games, and had merely told Váňa that he would try to help the Singapore team win the games by as many goals as possible as this was his job. Saad had not reported Váňa's requests or his knowledge that Váňa was betting on games to team officials or the authorities, but stated during his trial that he had told Váňa that he should stop betting on matches.[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1309&dat=19950602&id=ablOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=PB8EAAAAIBAJ&pg=5491,671340 Abbas: Vana offered to pay for goals], New Straits Times, 2 June 1995

In June 1995, the Singapore courts convicted Saad of match-fixing and fined him S$50,000. Saad received a lifetime ban from the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) from football activities in Singapore.{{cite news |date=12 March 2009 |title=FAS lifts ban imposed on Aussie footballer Abbas Saad in 1995 |url=http://www.channelnewsasia.com/cna/cgi-bin/clickthru.cgi?url=http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/414886/1/.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090315084541/http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/414886/1/.html |archive-date=15 March 2009 |access-date=4 March 2010 |publisher=Channel NewsAsia}} FIFA then issued a worldwide ban for Saad for life which was lifted after one year. Saad appealed to the FAS to lift the ban immediately after the ban but was rejected.{{Cite news |date=27 June 1995 |title=Abbas to appeal |url=https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/digitised/article/straitstimes19950627-1.2.43.3 |access-date=17 December 2024 |work=The Straits Times |pages=29 |via=NewspaperSG}}{{Cite news |last=Rai |first=Hakikat |date=29 June 1995 |title=FAS rejects Abbas' ban appeal |url=https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/digitised/article/straitstimes19950629-1.2.43.1 |access-date=17 December 2024 |work=The Straits Times |pages=29 |via=NewspaperSG}}

Saad continues to maintain that he was innocent of match-fixing, and that he merely knew that Váňa was betting on the outcomes of matches but was not involved himself. Speaking about the verdict in an interview in 2009, Saad said: "(Váňa) approached me once and said 'you score goals?' and I said 'of course I score goals, I'm a striker'. And so that conversation was taken out of context. There was no money received or nothing like that. I don't know how they built a case, I think it was a technical thing. I'm not a lawyer."

In 2009, FAS lifted Saad's ban in Singapore.[http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=649984&sec=global&root=global&cc=4716 Return of the 'Singapore Beckham'] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090531184811/http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=649984&sec=global&root=global&cc=4716|date=31 May 2009}}, ESPN Soccernet, 28 May 2009{{Cite web |last=Wang |first=Meng Meng |date=2009-03-22 |title=Party boy now a new man |url=http://news.asiaone.com/News/Latest+News/Sports/Story/A1Story20090316-128920.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090322220528/http://news.asiaone.com/News/Latest+News/Sports/Story/A1Story20090316-128920.html |archive-date=22 March 2009 |access-date=2024-12-17 |website=Asiaone}}

=Resumption of career=

After his FIFA ban ended, Saad played for several teams in the National Soccer League in Australia – Sydney Olympic in 1996–97, Sydney United from 1997–99, and for Northern Spirit FC in the 1999–00 season.

In 2003, Saad retired from playing.

International career

An attacking midfielder with a good eye for goal, Saad represented the Australian national team in a match against Russian club Torpedo Moscow and earned his first full cap against Malaysia two years later. After a six-year gap, he was recalled by then Socceroos coach Terry Venables for three games in 1998.[http://au.fourfourtwo.com/news/98803,abbas-finally-my-hell-is-over.aspx Abbas: Finally My Hell Is Over] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120727033216/http://au.fourfourtwo.com/news/98803,abbas-finally-my-hell-is-over.aspx |date=27 July 2012 }}, Australian FourFourTwo, 16 March 2009 In all, he played six times for Australia, earning four full caps.

Managerial career

Saad was coach at New South Wales Premier League side Penrith Nepean United, and in 2009 was named as Technical Youth Director by Sydney Olympic FC. He has also been the head coach for the Australian Deaf Football team. Saad has also served as the head coach of the GIS Academy at the Garden International School in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.[http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Sports/Story/A1Story20110724-290711.html Abbas Saad: Always on the ball] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171028194537/http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Sports/Story/A1Story20110724-290711.html |date=28 October 2017 }}, New Straits Times, 24 July 2011

In 2018, Saad returned to Sydney Olympic and led the team to win the New South Wales Premier League and Finals series championships double. He was named Coach of the Year.

In 2021, Saad started on his Asian Football Confederation Pro Licence course and returned to Singapore with an attachment to Singapore Premier League (SPL) Geylang International FC as an assistant coach.{{Cite news |last=Lee |first=David |date=12 May 2021 |title=Football: Ex-Malaysia Cup star Abbas Saad returns to Singapore for short coaching stint |url=https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/football/football-ex-malaysia-cup-star-abbas-saad-returns-to-singapore-for-short-coaching |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20240527065344/https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/football/football-ex-malaysia-cup-star-abbas-saad-returns-to-singapore-for-short-coaching |archive-date=2024-05-27 |access-date=2024-12-18 |work=The Straits Times |language=en}} During the stint with Geylang, Geylang won two out three matches and improved its position from sixth to fifth in the SPL.{{Cite news |last=Lee |first=David |date=14 August 2021 |title=Football: Geylang offer Abbas Saad a job but work pass application and appeal rejected |url=https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/football/football-geylang-offer-abbas-saad-a-job-but-employment-pass-application-and-appeal |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20240303184511/https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/football/football-geylang-offer-abbas-saad-a-job-but-employment-pass-application-and-appeal |archive-date=2024-03-03 |access-date=2024-12-18 |work=The Straits Times |language=en}} Geylang offered Saad to lead its youth development programme until the end of the SPL season with an option to extend for the next season. Saad accepted the offer but his application for a S Pass to work in Singapore was rejected by the Ministry of Manpower, citing his "adverse record". An appeal was made and was rejected similarly.

Broadcasting career

In August 2009, Saad appeared as a football expert in the studios of ESPN STAR Sports and for the SingTel coverage of the UEFA Champions League in Singapore, where his popularity once saw him dubbed as "The Singapore Beckham". He is also a regular studio guest for the English Premier League coverage and the FourFourTwo TV Show with the SuperSport channel on Malaysian network, Astro.[http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Sports/Story/A1Story20110307-266838.html I was convicted of match-fixing: Abbas Saad] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110310193048/http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest+News/Sports/Story/A1Story20110307-266838.html |date=10 March 2011 }}, New Straits Times, 7 March 2011

Personal life

Saad was born in Lebanon as the fourth child out of seven children to his parents. When the Lebanese Civil War broke out in 1975, Saad's eldest brother, Hussein died in an explosion. Saad's family then left for Sydney, Australia where his eldest sister Namat had moved to after she was married.

Abbas married Rania, an Australian of Arab descent, in 2000. They have two sons and a daughter. He named his sons after boxer Muhammad Ali and his football teammate, Malek Awab

References

External links

[http://www.ozfootball.net/ark/Players/SAA.html#AbbasSaad Abbas Saad] at Aussie Footballers
[https://web.archive.org/web/20091229092751/http://www.theexpat.com/magazine/2009oct/102_Sport_OCT09.pdf Abbas Saad] expat profile

Category:Australian men's soccer players

Category:Australia men's international soccer players

Category:Australian expatriate men's soccer players

Category:Lebanese emigrants to Australia

Category:Sportspeople of Lebanese descent

Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Malaysia

Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Qatar

Category:APIA Leichhardt FC players

Category:Sydney Olympic FC players

Category:Sydney United 58 FC players

Category:North West Sydney Spirit FC players

Category:Sydney Olympic FC managers