Al Ain fans do not want club’s trophy haul to end anytime soon

Zlatko Dalic’s men wrapped up their third AGL title in four years last month with three games to spare, so the attention with their vocal fan base is on the Asian Champions League and the President’s Cup, writes Maryam Al Shamsi.

Al Ain players and fans celebrate their title on Saturday night in a sea of purple and gold. Jeffrey E Biteng / The National

AL AIN // There was no winning end to the season for Arabian Gulf League champions Al Ain as they drew with Sharjah on Saturday night, but as they received the trophy the side’s supporters were already looking ahead.

Zlatko Dalic’s men wrapped up their third AGL title in four years last month with three games to spare, so the attention with their vocal fan base, who were out in force at the Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, is on the Asian Champions League and the President’s Cup.

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Supporter Hamad Sulaiman Al Sharji, 25, said before Saturday night’s match: “To us there is no stop, we will be going forward and hope to win other titles such as the President’s Cup and the Asian ­Championship.”

Al Ain host Dibba Al Fujairah in the President’s Cup on Thursday in the last 16 as they seek to win the trophy for a second successive year, having defeated Al Ahli 1-0 in last year’s final.

Ahli will be Al Ain’s foes in the last-16 of the Asian Champions League after both sides successfully qualified from the group stages this week.

The first leg is at Ahli on May 20, with the second leg in Al Ain seven days later.

Another fan, Abdulla Al Baloushi, 19, said his focus was on the Champions League and whether Dalic’s team can improve on last year’s run to the semi-finals by winning it.

“We hope we win again in the Asian Champions League,” Al Baloushi said. “Now we are playing against Al Ahli and I believe they will put more effort to that in order to qualify. So I hope our players play with passion.”

While a lot of attention remained around Ghanaian striker Asamoah Gyan and midfielder Omar Abdulrahman with Al Ain fans, for supporter Ahmed Tariq, it was the performances of midfielder Helal Saeed that were most ­inspirational.

“Omar Abdulrahman, he is considered the best player in the UAE and I am proud to have a player like him to play in our club, but the best this season is Helal Saeed,” he said. “He is the oldest one in the Al Ain team and moves the game forward.”

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