As one of the clubs owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), Al Ittihad have been used to huge stars of the game passing through their doors in recent years.
Karim Benzema and Ngolo Kante were pillars of their Saudi Pro League title win last season. The likes of former Premier League players Fabinho and Steven Bergwijn continue to lead their challenge this time around.
And yet when 60,000 or so of their passionate supporters pour into King Abdullah Sports City on Tuesday night, they might find some of their opposition are even more recognisable than their own.
Al Wahda provide Ittihad’s opposition in the rescheduled, single leg last 16 tie of the AFC Champions League Elite in Jeddah.
The Abu Dhabi club might be one of the best backed sides in the UAE Pro League. But they – like everyone else eyeing continental glory in Jeddah this month – are giving away plenty in terms of financing to the clubs from the host country.
And yet, within a squad that boasts some of the leading UAE national team players, Wahda’s budget has also stretched to a couple of big-name imports.
Dusan Tadic is their creative heartbeat. The Serbian playmaker, formerly of Ajax, Fenerbahce, and Southampton in the Premier League, is a member of an exclusive club.
In 2019 he became just the ninth player in history to receive a perfect 10 rating from the French football newspaper L'Equipe for his role in Ajax’s win away to Real Madrid in the Uefa Champions League.
Having been good enough to silence the Bernabeu in the past, a partisan crowd in Jeddah is likely to provide him more motivation than trepidation.
“Of course, you miss playing in front of full stadiums and, definitely, this will be extra motivation for me and for all of us,” Tadic told The National. “You want to show them that you can compete with them.”
Now 37, it would be easy to assume Tadic has come to Abu Dhabi to quietly wind down his career with one last pay day. His demeanour when representing Wahda suggests the opposite, though.
Tadic’s competitive fire is undimmed. Wahda’s results have been patchy of late, and their Serbian star has been wearing his frustration visibly. When he was substituted late on in their recent 2-2 draw with Al Nasr in the UAE Pro League, he donned his high-vis bib and promptly spent the rest of the game barking tactical instructions from the technical area.
It brought to mind Cristiano Ronaldo’s performance after being substituted in the 2016 European Championships final, when he all but took over management duties from Fernando Santos.
“You want to win the games; it's about that winning mentality,” Tadic said. “You always want to win. It doesn't matter if you play or not, you just want to win the games.”
Along with Omar Khribin, the Syrian forward and Wahda captain, Tadic now forms an attacking triumvirate with Christian Benteke. The former Aston Villa and Crystal Palace striker, who was once good enough to earn a $40 million move to Liverpool, arrived in Abu Dhabi at the start of this year.
Now 35, the Belgian had been playing for DC United in the United States for the past three years, before joining a league of which he was surprisingly knowledgeable.
“I was familiar with the country because my kids were living in Dubai for a few years so I was coming here from the US in my off-season, spending time here,” Benteke said.
“I went a few times to Abu Dhabi. I did an interview with an ex-player from Al Wahda and I didn’t know I would one day end up playing for them, but I was familiar with the league.
“I knew there were good players, and also in terms of the weather, it is different from Europe and even more so than the US.”
Benteke’s arrival has coincided with a run of inconsistent results for Wahda. After Jose Morais surprisingly left to coach Sharjah, the team have been getting used to the methods of new manager Darko Milanic, as well as playing with a targetman forward in the form of Benteke.
“I knew that I would need time to adapt, but at the same time there was pressure,” Benteke said.
“At the end of the day, people don’t care about the adaptation phase. They want you to deliver. You have to come in and score goals, and you have to win games.”
It is two months since the group phase of the Champions League Elite ended. Since then, Wahda have won just once in seven matches in the domestic league.
They have kept a clean sheet just once in that time, which is unbecoming of a side that has the core of the UAE national team backline.
Lucas Pimenta, the Wahda and UAE centre back, says they need to be better, but that they have a chance in Jeddah.
“If there is someone to blame it is us,” Pimenta said of Wahda’s form. “We are playing, we are the face of the team. Of course, we are not happy with this situation.
“Everyone knows us. I cannot say sorry, I cannot say anything. The only thing we can do is come for the next game and do better. There is no excuse. We have to work and do better.
“In Asia, we were doing very well. It has been a long time since we played [Champions League] but now it is one game, 90 minutes, and everyone has a chance to win.”
