AL AIN // The club’s administration have accepted the blame for Al Ain’s struggles this season, and have vowed to do everything possible to return the team to the top of UAE football.
Al Ain, comfortably champions of the past two seasons, have laboured throughout the 2013/14 campaign and currently sit eighth in the standings, 18 points behind leaders Al Ahli with seven rounds remaining.
The problems can be traced back to last summer, when the club reacted to the departure of Cosmin Olaroiu, the coach of the two championship-winning sides, by installing Jorge Fossati. The Uruguayan was dismissed on the eve of the new season.
His replacement, Quique Sanchez Flores, was not appointed until four league rounds had elapsed, by which time Al Ain had already suffered two defeats. They have endured a difficult time since, although Wednesday’s recruitment of Zlatko Dalic as technical supervisor has been described as an attempt to help move the club in the right direction.
“I admit we made some mistakes at the beginning of season in terms of choices, and there are disappointments in not achieving what we expected,” said Khalifa Suleiman, manager of Al Ain’s sport sector. “So we’re here to say sorry to the Al Ain fans.
“But we’re here to work. That is most important for the team. We’re not satisfied with the performance of the first team, but we needed to have a decisive attitude to know how to solve these problems.
He said he would like to see the side perform to the level they showed last week in their Asian Champions League victory over Lekhwiya, “and also I stress the importance of evaluating every player’s performance.
“This isn’t a threat, but to try for the best to improve.”
jmcauley@thenational.ae
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A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
The 24-man squad:
Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois (Chelsea), Simon Mignolet (Liverpool), Koen Casteels (VfL Wolfsburg).
Defenders: Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham), Thomas Meunier (Paris Saint-Germain), Thomas Vermaelen (Barcelona), Jan Vertonghen (Tottenham), Dedryck Boyata (Celtic), Vincent Kompany (Manchester City).
Midfielders: Marouane Fellaini (Manchester United), Axel Witsel (Tianjin Quanjian), Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City), Eden Hazard (Chelsea), Nacer Chadli (West Bromwich Albion), Leander Dendoncker (Anderlecht), Thorgan Hazard (Borussia Moenchengladbach), Youri Tielemans (Monaco), Mousa Dembele (Tottenham Hotspur).
Forwards: Michy Batshuayi (Chelsea/Dortmund), Yannick Carrasco (Dalian Yifang), Adnan Januzaj (Real Sociedad), Romelu Lukaku (Manchester United), Dries Mertens (Napoli).
Standby player: Laurent Ciman (Los Angeles FC).
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
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Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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