Al Ain need a new direction to stay competitive with Arabian Gulf League champions Al Ahli

Khamis Esmail, who joined Al Ahli for a reported Dh60 million fee in January. Ashraf Al Amra / Al Ittihad

A week in January separated them, but from there the UAE’s two fiercest rivals seemed to grow apart a little more.

Back then, when Al Ain were top of the Arabian Gulf League and Al Ahli second, the division's front-runners each sought reinforcements in midfield. Ahli, by now established as the country's biggest spenders, coaxed one of the UAE's most established stars, Khamis Esmail, from Al Jazira. He cost a reported Dh60 million.

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Seven days later, reigning champions Al Ain signed for a reduced amount Yaser Matar, also from Jazira, despite him not starting regularly, despite him being an understudy to Esmail. Same club, same position, entirely different calibre of player.

Khamis to Ahli, Matar to Al Ain: two deals, one week apart, signifying two clubs moving in opposite directions. And so it proved, as Ahli soon overtook Al Ain, a course that concluded last week with celebrations of a seventh UAE championship.

Al Ain, second in the league, have slipped behind Ahli in spending power as well, overtaken not just in UAE football’s hierarchy, but in the transfer market, too. Last summer was another case in point: Ahli recruited Rodrigo Lima for €7 million (Dh29.5m) and then Moussa Sow for an alleged €16m, a UAE transfer record.

Al Ain were setting a new benchmark themselves, but in collecting money, as Asamoah Gyan was sold to China’s Shanghai SIPG for approximately €20m. A surprising yet incredibly shrewd deal by the champions, it constituted a substantial windfall.

However, the expected reinvestment did not come, at least to the extent anticipated. Al Ain bought Fellipe Bastos for €1.5m, Ryan Babel for €2.5m and borrowed Emmanuel Emenike. When the latter pair failed to impress, Al Ain returned to the market in January and re-emerged with Douglas and Danilo Asprilla. Both modest signings, both possessing talent, neither the star name the club’s fans desired.

Ultimately, that has proven Al Ain’s downfall. Boasting an arguably equally adept local contingent to Ahli, their foreign unit is nowhere near as skilled. The Asian Champions League, of course, became another distraction that Ahli did not have to negotiate, but as well as cramming tight the schedule it confirmed that Al Ain required more talent at the top level, better strength in depth.

Predictably, the supporters have vented their frustration, some of which is justified. Fundamentally, football is a trivial pursuit, but in Al Ain it represents something else, matters that little bit more. Their fans are credited as being the most country’s vociferous and, by consequence, its most demanding.

They expect more from their players, more from their coach, more from their management and from their club. They have called for significant change this summer and that is expected at all levels, although it is difficult to see what else coach Zlatko Dalic could have given. While competing against Ahli, while chasing at the same time the Champions League and eventually the President’s Cup, he has been hamstrung.

Al Ain therefore must change tack; their chance of regaining the top seat in UAE football depends on it. What is more, the country’s most decorated club could begin next season in the Champions League quarter-finals, three rounds from once again being crowned continental champions. Thus, the investment needs to match the ambition. A significant summer lays ahead.

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