Dubai: Al Shabab coach Paulo Bonamigo has refused to give up his team's chase for the Etisalat Pro League title despite trailing current leaders Al Ain by six points.
The Dubai-based club, who are currently in fourth place, beat arch-rivals Al Ahli 3-2 in a hard-fought Deira derby on Monday night. "This is a huge win for us as it will give our players the confidence they need to go into the last phase of the league and fight for the title," Bonamigo said.
With honours even at 2-2 at half-time, it was January signing Welker Almeida's [Kieza] goal that sealed maximum points for Al Shabab as they kept up chase of the top three teams — Al Ain, Al Nasr and Al Jazira.
The result was even more important for Bonamigo as Al Shabab had gone without a positive result for their last four matches.
Meanwhile, Al Ahli coach Quique Sanchez Flores was left wondering what he has to do to put his team's campaign back on track. "We have hardly shown any dynamics during our past few matches. And though we have not changed much, the results have gone against us," the Spaniard said.
Sanchez insisted that his task is far from finished with the Red Devils after the ex-Atletico Madrid coach was brought in at the end of last year to get the Al Ahli campaign back on track. And until the middle of next month he will have some time to rebuild his side before the league enters the final phase.
