Al Ahli's record buy Moussa Sow bags brace in victory over Emirates Club

 

Moussa Sow proved the hero as his brace helped Al Ahli to a 2-1 victory at Emirates Club on Wednesday night.

The Senegalese international was a menacing presence for the Red Knights and his two goals put Cosmin Olaroiu’s side within four points of AGL leaders Al Ain with a game in hand.

Al Ahli have won 10 out of their 12 games but had to come from behind to bank this latest maximum return.

Despite the scoreline, the game never lacked ferocity and was exciting and intense throughout.

The visitors could have been ahead as early as the opening minute but Sow could not direct his header goalwards after Abdulaziz Haikal’s right-flank delivery.

They continued to gather momentum and a cleverly-weighed pass from Everton Ribeiro allowed Abdulaziz Sanqour to unleash a powerful strike from distance but it was saved by keeper Ali Saqr.

After absorbing some early pressure, Emirates took the lead with 23 minutes gone.

A mistimed header by Salmeen Khamis allowed home striker Rodrigo to flick the ball on to Brett Holman who drove a spectacular effort past Majed Naser from 15-yards out.

But just when it looked like Emirates might double their advantage, Al Ahli equalised against the run of play.

Mohamed Malalla thumped a header off the crossbar and Al Ahli went straight up the field to score. Khamis’ effort was initially blocked by Saqr but Sow was on hand to tuck away the rebound from close range. Within a minute of the
restart, it got even better for Ahli as they took the lead. Ismail Al Hammadi collected the ball on halfway and came marauding down the left to feed Ribeiro. The Brazilian’s left-footed shot was stopped by Saqr and Ahli’s Dh81m record buy Sow reacted quickest to slot home from three yards out.

Holman had a chance to pull back an equalizer after 60 minutes but his effort from an acute angle drifted wide.

Sow could have completed his hat-trick late on but substitute keeper Ahmed Al Shaji denied him.

New Al Jazira coach Henk Ten Cate targets AFC Champions League group stage

New Al Jazira coach Henk Ten Cate is under no illusion he must restore the self-belief of his players if they want to be successful and has set an immediate target of reaching this season’s AFC Champions League group stage. 

The Dutchman has signed a contract until the end of the season, with an option for renewal, taking over from Abel Braga, who was sacked after three wins in 16 games earlier this month.

Ten Cate, 61, inherits a squad languishing in 10th position in the AGL, 20 points behind leaders Al Ain and already out of the Arabian Gulf Cup. 

Xavi’s Al Sadd stand in Pride of Abu Dhabi’s way in the Champions League group with the two sides meeting in February’s qualifier.

But Ten Cate’s first task is motivating his players ahead of their first AGL game away at Al Wasl on January 8.

“I can promise to the fans that we will do our utmost to get the best out of this team,” said the former Chelsea and Barcelona assistant coach.

“It’s important we play good football but to start with, we need to build the confidence of the players. 

“If you’re losing games that in itself loses confidence and we need to bring back this confidence. You only get that by winning games. The most important thing is bring back the spirit in the team, and with this, I’m sure we can win a lot of games.

“You will see a team who are fit and fight for every ball. For now, it’s the most we can promise.” 

The ex-Al Ahli coach added: “The main aim is to qualify for the AFC Champions League. It’s not going to be easy because we have the strongest opponent in Al Sadd and Xavi is still there. 

“Also to go far in the President’s Cup is a big thing but I feel Al Jazira has to be in the Champions League.” 

Ten Cate, who revealed he turned down the chance to work at Al Jazira in 2003 in favour of a move to the Nou Camp, has already taken charge of training and has been impressed by what he saw.

Rueing the absence of injured attacking duo Jefferson Farfan and Mirko Vucinic, Ten Cate said it was important to look at the team quality before deciding what strategies to play.

“There a good use of local players and it’s about time to show what they can do. I hope they will show it,” he said.

“Age doesn’t matter. If you’re good enough you’re old enough. We had two under-19 players train with us and we will give everyone a chance to play football.” 

And the ex-midfielder refused to be drawn whether he would dip into the transfer market. He said: “If we talk about players we don’t have, then it’s demotivating for those who are with us.”

But club chief executive Ayed Mabkhout, added: “We are working now with the sporting director to try and look for new players.”

UAE starlet Abdulla Kazim dreaming of Olympic place ahead of AFC qualification tournament

UAE Under-23 winger Abdulla Kazim has vowed to give his all to ensure he achieves a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and plays at the Rio 2016 Olympics.

Kazim, 19, is part of the 27-man preliminary squad selected to compete in next month’s decisive qualifying tournament in Qatar.

Only a top-three finish at the 2016 AFC Under-23 Championship will see the current generation secure a second-successive entry to the Games. The Al Wasl regular opened the scoring in last Wednesday’s 3-0 warm-up match victory against North Korea and he wants to carry his momentum all the way forward to next summer’s gala event.

He said: “It is an inspiration for us to win the first match. It helps us to think about other wins before we enter the tournament, full of confidence. It is a dream for every player to play in the Olympics. It comes only once in your lifetime.

“We will try our best to reach our goals. I think we will try our hardest and as much as we can. We cannot lose this dream – we will try our best to reach it.”

Current senior stars such as Al Ain playmaker Omar Abdulrhman and Al Jazira hot shot Ali Mabkhout first wowed a global audience at London 2012. Along with coach Mahdi Ali, that group went on to win the 2013 Gulf Cup and finish third at last January’s Asian Cup.

“It motivates us to try to play there,” Kazim said of their achievements. “They played in the Olympics and we should do the same or even better. They played last time and didn’t qualify (from the group stage). We try to qualify and get even better results.

“It inspires everyone to see the first-team coach (Ali) was here to watch us play North Korea. But for me, I only think about what I have to do on the field. Now we are focusing more on what is happening here. We have an important tournament ahead.”

Dr Abdulla Misfer has been tasked with guiding the U-23s at the Championship from January 12-30. The former Al Dhafra supremo boasts a wealth of experience, which Kazim is happy to tap into.

He said: “Dr Misfer inspires us on the field and gives us confidence to do whatever we want. “When you go inside the field with confidence for yourself and from the coach, you play well.”

The team regrouped for their second training camp last Sunday, ahead of further friendlies against China on Friday and South Korea on January 4. The final 23 players selected will then head to Doha, where they face a fearsome first Group D clash against Australia on January 14.

“We don’t care about who we play against,” said Kazim, about a pool which features further matches against Jordan on January 17 and Vietnam on January 20. “We have confidence in our skills and our players. If it is a big team or a small team, we focus for the match in the same way.”