Bin Thaaloub: We infinitely trust Al Ain FC stars to delight UAE fans
Chaired by H.E Mohamed Bin Thaaloub Al Derie, Chairman of Al Ain Club Investment Company – AACIC, the Higher Local Organizing Committee for the 2016 AFC Champions League Final held its first meeting yesterday “Wednesday” at the Conference Room in Al Ain HQs at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium – HBZS. The meeting was attended by all members including H.E Mubarak Bin Hammouda, AACIC Vice-Chairman; H.E Ahmad Hameed Al Mazrouei, Vice-Chairman of Al Ain FC Company; Mohamed Abdullah Bin Hazzam, Secretary-General of UAE Football Association; Rashid Abdullah, Commercial and Operations Director of AACIC; and Hamad Bin Dilan Al Mazrouei, Local General Coordinator.
The committee members discussed and reviewed all organizational matters of the AFC Champions League Final that will be held the day after tomorrow “Saturday, the meeting also revised reports of HBZ Stadium arrangements for the VIPs entry, members of the Honorary Board, and holders of Ainawi season tickets.
The committee stressed on the importance of providing amenities for delegations of AFC and Jeonbuk team, in addition to providing all tickets allotted for the guest fans in line with Al Ain Club’s sportsmanship and clean play commitments. The committee also recommended to provide the UAE and Al Ain FC fans with all cheering tools, and to distribute a guide map showing the stadium entrances, seats and car parks.
The Committee Chairman commended Al Ain Club’s honorable performance in the first leg of the final against Jeonbuk and made clear that “Al Ain players showed a high heroic performance and managed to disconcert the opponent at their home. Therefore, they deserved the respect and greeting of the Korean fans who knew that the result achieved by their opponents was not bad,” he said.
“We’re absolutely sure, that Al Ain stars are able to bring joy to all UAE citizens and residents, especially that the players showed a champion’s personality in South Korea and challenged factors of long flight, exhaustion, weather and poor playing ground. This makes us feel that we are very close to the title.”
“He believed that Al Ain players deserve to win the Asian title again based on their enthusiasm, fighter spirit and determination showed throughout the first-leg of the final”. He added
“Each player is quite aware of his role and responsibility during the 90 minutes prior to winning the title he continued and highly appreciated the commitment showed by Al Ain fans that always follow the team everywhere and travel thousands of miles to support them. He believed that their role will be very effective in the final in a way that is consistent with the players’ expectations. “Words fail us to express our commendation and appreciation to Al Ain fans; they are the main partner in all achievements of Al Ain Club” he added.
Extraordinary preparations
Finally, Bin Thaaloub highlighted the role of local, GCC and Arab media through their remarkable and highly professional coverage of all sport events. “This was evident through the excellent and faultless coverage of the final’s first leg by specialized sport programs, newspapers and news websites,” he added.
“HBZ Stadium is well-equipped to meet all needs of local and international media that will cover the final. The reporters’ stand was doubled up and the press center was expanded by 20%. Preparations for the final are going well on track through coordination between the AFC officials and local organizers including UAE Football Association, Al Ain Club and safety and security providers,” he concluded.
Diplomatic greeting
Regarding the effective role of UAE Embassy during Al Ain team’s stay in South Korea, Hamad Bin Nukheirat Al Ameri said: “We were not surprised for that great support of UAE Embassy, which provided appropriate conditions for our delegation members in spite of the difficult moments they had in Jeonju.
We are used to honorable attitudes of the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which takes remarkable care of all UAE citizens abroad in line with our wise leaders’ vision that people are the most important and valuable national treasure.”
“The Al Ain Fans Office played a great role in coordinating with UAE Embassy in South Korea, which led to providing all amenities for fans, students living there, in addition to GCC and Arab communities, and providing highly professional safety and security measures. Having done all that, the final word remains for Al Ain men at home,” he added.
