Abu Dhabi: Al Ain, who suffered heartbreak last year in the final of the AFC Champions League and failed to add a second title after their 2003 inaugural success, will be starting their campaign this season taking on Iran’s Zob Ahan in Group C at the Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium on Tuesday.
The action starts at 7.15pm local time.
However, inconsistent form will be a major worry for the Garden City club’s Croatian coach Zoran Mamic. The strikers have failed to come good at times and some of the key players are nursing injuries.
“We have what we have and I cannot make abracadabra and find something new but we have to do our job much better than before,” said Mamic, when asked if he has found a solution to improve his team’s strike force.
“The players who play in the front have to be more concentrated and have passion and always try again and again. I don’t see this as a big problem,” said Mamic adding, “Of course, every coach wants to have five Ronaldos in the team but it is not possible and that is why we have to play with what we have.”
Though Al Ain lost to Dibba recently, they did defeat Al Shabab last Thursday but are now 10 points adrift from leaders Al Jazira.
They will once again be relying on their star and AFC Player of the Year Omar Abdul Rahman heavily in this tie.
The absence of Colombian winger Danilo Asprilla and Amer Abdul Rahman with injuries is a bit of a blow for the hosts.
“We have a problem with the long term injured players; the newest one being Amer. He will not be in this game but all the other players who have been playing in the last few games will be playing. Asprilla will not participate in the game tomorrow but he will be back soon,” revealed Mamic adding it was not a question of one striker or two strikers, or 4-4-2 or 4-2-3-1 that he was focused on, but what he wants is a strong performance.
“For me, it’s important how the team play on the field. If we can play, how we play and the quality that we have, then the numbers are not important,” said Mamic — who also urged Al Ain fans to turn up in large numbers.
“I wish the Al Ain fans come to support the team. We need the support because players without fans are not players and they need the support. It not a one-way ticket, it’s both ways. I can promise that the team is ready and the team will give a good performance.”
Former AFC Champions League runners-up Zob Ahan on the other hand are well-placed in the Iran Pro League in fourth spot. But they too have seen a dip in their form in recent times, managing just a point from their last four games.
The 2010 finalists, however, will also be looking for some payback as they were eliminated by Al Ain in last year’s Round of 16 on a 3-1 aggregate defeat.
“Al Ain is one of the best teams in Asia but we are ready for the challenge. I’m happy to come back to the AFC Cup and all players are coming here for a good performance — and I’m sure we will have a good performance during this match,” said coach Mujtaba Husseini.
Elsewhere, Qatar’s Al Rayyan, who dominated the 2016 Qatar Stars League season by winning the title by 14 points, take on Al Wahda.
Both teams are returning to Asia’s premier club competition after a long gap and will start their campaign in Group D.
Both sides are taking part in the AFC Champions League for the seventh time, although Al Rayyan have never made it out of the group stages, while Al Wahda reached the semi-finals in 2007.
In that year’s edition, Al Wahda also beat Al Rayyan both home (3-0) and away (1-0).
Al Wahda come into the contest after comfortably defeating Jordan’s Al Wehdat 3-0 in the AFC play-offs.
