Champions Al Ain must heed the lessons from their 2-2 draw at promoted Fujairah if they want to taste more Arabian Gulf League success, according to coach Zoran Mamic.
The Boss were twice pegged back on the east coast as they dropped their first points of 2018/19. Sweden No9 Marcus Berg’s early tap-in and veteran substitute Ibrahim Diaky predatory back-post strike from a corner were cancelled out by Algerian forward Mohamed Benyettou’s close-range finish after an embarrassing slip from UAE centre-back Ismail Ahmed, plus young defender Khalid Abdullah’s powerful header.
Speaking after Friday’s engaging clash at Fujairah Stadium, Mamic demanded a response from his top flight and President’s Cup double winners.
He said: “This match was not easy, especially since our opponent was able to perform their defensive work well and managed to get a deserved point at the end of the game. But we missed the accuracy of the right passes.
“Sometimes in football this happens. And we consumed a lot of energy during the confrontation.
“They [the Al Ain players] are currently required to turn the page from this night and focus on the merits of the next team in the Arabian Gulf Cup. That will be without our international players, before returning to this competition [the AGL] again.
“We did not plan to drop the points, even respecting Fujairah’s ambitions. But in football matches you sometimes face conditions that lead you to losing points and we have to learn from mistakes and take advantage of them in the coming game.”
Mamic’s work on the training pitch will have to wait. A total of seven players have been called up for the UAE squad for this international break’s training camp in Barcelona, while Berg is with his World Cup 2018 quarter-finalists and midfielder Hussein El Shahat is with Egypt.
The remaining stars, such as centre-back Mohanad Salem plus Japan utility man Tsukasa Shiotani, next face a pair of Arabian Gulf Cup matches. In Group B, they travel to Al Jazira on Wednesday and welcome Al Dhafra the following Monday.
A central figure in these matches will be Diaky, who is experiencing a stellar campaign off the bench.
📸 | @Fuj_FC VS @alainfcae Match in the Arabian Gulf League Round 5
— Al Ain FC - EN (@alainfcae_en) October 5, 2018
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The 36-year-old’s cameo this weekend was bettered last month when he struck twice to turnaround a 2-1 league victory against Dhafra.
“For me, Diaky is a very important player,” Mamic said. “If I played him at the start of the second half, he may not be able to score any goals.
“It remains that the decision to involve him in any game is a technical matter.”
