Zlatko excludes justifications for unwinning over El Jaish
Talking to the media just before the AFC semifinals, Zlatko Dalić, Al Ain’s Croatian coach, stressed the importance of securing today a win to ensure a comfortable second leg against Qatar’s El Jaish which had earlier managed to inflict a two-legged loss on them during the Group Stage. “The team is well prepared to take on El Jaish. We know what is expected from us today; that’s why we’ve been training seriously and won our first two games in the AGL,” he said.
“We’re very close,” he continued, “from achieving our ultimate goal of regaining the AFC title; therefore, we have to fare well today, maintain attentiveness and concentration in order not to conceive any goal. We also hope to see large numbers of our fans in the stadium to support the team.”
He pointed out that the participation of their injured keeper Khaled Issa in today’s game will depend on the physician’s report; however, he expressed trust in their alternative Mohamed Saeed Busenda to fill the gap.
He made clear that the fact they have suffered in the AFC competition four losses of which two were to El Jaish would overweigh their challenge; “But at the same time it incentivizes the players to show their personality and power against their opponents. Regardless of our circumstances, and particularly the injuries, no excuses will be accepted for not winning today,” he stressed.
Asked whether it would have been more difficult for Al Ain to play against Al Nasr instead of El Jaish at this stage, Zlatko said: “Definitely, playing against Al Nasr would have been harder because we are from the same country and Al Nasr knows everything about Al Ain just like we know everything about them.
