Abu Dhabi: On a cold Christmas day of 2015, former Dutch winger Henk ten Cate is having a quiet time with his family when he gets a call from good friend Butti Al Qubaisi asking for help.
Al Qubaisi’s plea is to get his UAE-based team Al Jazira out of the rut as they were fighting relegation and their pride was at stake.
Ten Cate like a true friend obliges. It had been three years since ten Cate had done a coaching assignment.
His career as coach is laced with a long list, including stints as assistant coach with Barcelona and Chelsea.
But the man of repute had called it a day in 2013 after being a caretaker with Sparta Rotterdam.
Coming out of sabbatical was a huge challenge and to start mid-season without your own hand-picked support staff, make the task all the more daunting.
Ten Cate, however, was determined to assist and sets off for the desert challenge.
The vast experience of the Dutchman did wonders almost instantaneously as Jazira beats relegation.
They finish seventh in the Arabian Gulf League (AGL) and then goes on to clinch the second high profile tournament — President’s Cup.
By now Jazira and the players had started to believe and ten Cate is held back for another year to chase their dream of claiming the Arabian Gulf League.
On Saturday, Jazira was officially crowned champions and that too in an emphatic fashion, breaking record after record on the way.
With the win, they became the first team to win 22 AGL matches since the league turned professional in 2008.
And more importantly, an Emirati player of the club — Ali Mabkhout had etched his name into the history books as the all-time best scorer with 33 goals.
An there was ten Cate looking relieved and content with a spark in his old grey eye looking at least 10 years younger after heaving a huge sigh of relief.
“I stopped coaching when Butti called me and in fact he was the person who gathered everyone. This is not my championship but it’s our championship because each and every individual did their part to win this title,” said ten Cate, who immediately was tossed up with a new contract but that didn’t entice the 62-year-old who is desperately looking for a break with his family more than anything.
And the celebration began, ten Cate inevitably put the team into the unknown by saying he would only take a call on extending the contract after discussing with his family.
“Things like this we need to discuss. I’m still thinking if I want to continue because I came here for six months. Now it’s already 18 months and I don’t know if I want to continue as I’m coming to the fag end of my coaching career. I’m 62 and I’m tired,” said ten Cate accepting in the same breath that the prospect of staying as coach with the possibility of Jazira playing in the Club World Cup in December is appealing.
“It’s been a fantastic club to work with and with a possibility of playing in the Club World Cup in December. It’s a very big event and telecast all over the world, and if Jazira makes it, they will be watched by hundreds of millions of people. I can only take the call after speaking with my family. I have already been away from them too long,” said ten Cate, who last month shot down a call from his national team eyeing the 2018 Russia World Cup qualification.
Under ten Cate, Al Jazira has certainly looked more towards giving their academy players a look in early and Dutchman feels that’s the way forward.
“This year, we have around five of them playing regularly. I think it is the pathway Jazira needs to take and the club is on the right track on this. We can’t keep buying and buying players. I think money in the Emirates is also not endless. We need to educate the young players in the country. Educating them must be the slogan,” said Ten Cate adding that other clubs in the Emirates should also follow suit.
Despite finishing on a record high, ten Cate was of the view that his team has a lot of potential to excel.
“As I have said earlier, this team is only around 80 to 85 per cent and there is still room for improvement. I think this is the beginning of something nice for Jazira.”
