DUBAI // Grafite, the Al Ahli captain, says Al Ain’s recent run in the Asian Champions League will serve as motivation to his team for next season’s tournament.
The Garden City club last month became the first UAE team since 2007 to feature in the semi-finals, where they were defeated 4-2 on aggregate by Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal. It marked significant progress for Arabian Gulf League sides, who in recent times have struggled for success on the continent.
Having performed well in the early years of the competition’s rebranding – Al Ain were the inaugural “Champions League” winners in 2003 – UAE sides began to stumble to such an extent that, between 2008 and 2013, only three Emirati representatives advanced from the group stages.
However, improvement this season can be seen in Al Ain’s qualification for the last four, while Al Jazira performed admirably, too. The Abu Dhabi club were Al Ain’s opponents in May’s last-16 tie.
Ahli, meanwhile, narrowly missed out on the knockout stages, with the UAE champions finishing third in a tightly congested Group D topped by Hilal.
Ahli suffered a solitary defeat in their six matches, but a succession of draws meant they placed third, one point off Qatar’s Al Sadd in second.
Yet, despite managing to register only one victory, Ahli entered their last match with a genuine chance of progressing.
Grafite says the failure to advance still rankles, although the Brazilian insists his side have been buoyed by Al Ain’s 2014 display.
“When you see Al Ain in the semi-final, you imagine you can achieve this also,” he said.
“Al Hilal were our opponents in the first phase, and so sometimes, we think it could have been us in their place. A semi-final between Al Ahli and Al Ain would be amazing for the clubs, the players, for local football, for everybody.
“It gives us motivation for next year. It shows we have to work harder than last time to pass the next phase and do what Al Ain did this year. This is inspiration for us.”
Given Ahli’s exertions last season – the Dubai side were at one stage juggling commitments in four competitions – the club sought to bolster their squad during the summer transfer window.
They recruited Mirel Radoi, the Romanian midfielder from Al Ain, and eventually Carlos Munoz, the Baniyas striker, who replaced the injured Ciel.
To their local roster, Ahli added talent and experience in Habib Fardan, the Al Nasr captain last season, Baniyas midfielder Nawaf Mubarak and Eisa Ahmed, the UAE international defender from Al Wahda.
Grafite believes the investment was warranted, since Ahli are focused on retaining their league title and Arabian Gulf Cup crown while also improving on their runner-up spot in the 2014 President’s Cup and their most recent Champions League campaign.
“You need more quality, especially in the Champions League, where we missed it,” he said. “We didn’t prepare ourselves well for the Champion League, because it’s another level, not the same as the league and the cups.
“It’s not as easy. Our group last year was so hard: ex-champions Al Hilal and Al Sadd and also Sepahan, who, even though they had never won the Champions League, Iranian teams have experience.
“But we did well in our group. We lost only the last game – the most-important one – but this is big experience for us, proving that next year we can do better. When we have the players like we have now, we’ve a big chance.”
jmcauley@thenational.ae
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