Confirmed Amer will play, Zlatko: determined to reclaim the Asian trophy without any pressure

In his pre-match press conference, Al Ain FC’s Croatian coach Zlatko Dalić said that his mind was totally preoccupied by how to notch up the Asian trophy from the South Korean Jeonbuk during today’s encounter to add a remarkable credit to his career.

Confirming that his squad has significantly prepared for the final, Zlatko frankly stressed the personal dimension of the Asian challenge; “Today’s match is extremely important to me. I want to win the Asian title and continue coaching Al Ain. We are fully aware it won’t be easy; it will be a full 90 minutes of challenge to get to the glory and make history,” he added.

Comparing between both teams, Zlatko said that his players are disadvantaged by having to score if they want to win the title; while a scoreless draw will suffice to name their rivals champions; “But unlike us, our rivals have suffered a setback after losing the K-League title to Seoul; while we are not under pressure,” he mentioned.

He made clear that his men have learnt a lot from their mistakes since the beginning of the tournament, confirming that his main focus lies on his team rather than other teams. “We will be playing attentively without any rush and in our own play style,” he continued.

He concluded by saying that Mohamed Ahmed will miss the match due to the injury he had picked up two months ago and that Amer Abdurrahman will also be watching from the bench unless the course of the match requires otherwise. Apart from that, all the players are physically and mentally ready for the encounter.