Disturbed by absences, Zlatko: We’ll seek the best solution to beat Kalba

Zlatko Dalić, Al Ain’s Croatian Coach, said that for him, every match is the most important on their way to win the AGL title, as his squad always seeks to carry on the good results and strengthen its position on the leaderboard.

“Several leading players will be missed in the next match against Kalba, such as defender Ismail Ahmed, Mohannad Al Enezi, Mohamed Fayez, Mohamed Ahmed and Saeed al-Minhali”, he commented.

“Hopefully, Douglas Dyanfres and Danilo Asprilla are back on the lineup after watching the squad’s match against Al-Sharijah last week from the bench. I am very satisfied with our performance last round and hope to carry this on during the upcoming stages”, he added.

Zlatko pointed out that the time scheduled for the game at 4:45 p.m. is a slight problem for his team, as the periods of the next training sessions need to be adjusted accordingly.

“It always worries me when I play against a team that adopts full defensive play style. Kalba managed to hold their rivals to a draw last round; which considerably motivates them. In addition to that, the players will show their best to secure a place in the lineup as a new coach has been recently appointed. Let’s not also forget that Kalba includes many high-skilled players”, Zlatko continued.

“I prefer the play offensive and hope to score an early lead so things get easier. We do respect all our foes and know the match against Kalba won’t be easy”, he added.

“As I said, for me, the most important match is the one to come. So we are not thinking about the game after the next, neither do we draw on the calculations. Our main focus now lies on the next encounter against Kalba”, he noted.

Zlatko will be grudgingly choosing among the substitutes to replace five key players such as defender Ismail Ahmed, Mohannad Al Enezi, Mohamed Fayez, Mohamed Ahmed and Saeed al-Menhali.

“We have talented players whose positions in the pitch need to be altered; especially as some of them have been waiting for this for long in order to unleash their true potentials. I believe the match will be exciting as I will try to choose the best players for the lineup”, he concluded.