Dubai: Al Ain coach Zoran Mamic has criticised the timing of Alberto Zaccheroni’s UAE camp as it means the Arabian Gulf League champions could be sanctioned for not fielding their best players in the ongoing Arab Club Champions Cup.
The UAE are in Austria from July 31 to August 19 in the first of three external camps in preparation for January’s hosting of the Asian Cup. During that time they will play friendlies against four club sides before an international friendly against Andorra on August 18.
Meanwhile, Al Ain have two legs against Algeria’s ES Setif this week in Croatia. They lost their opener 2-1 on Tuesday and play their second leg of the first round in Zagreb on August 4.
Talal Al Shaikh, the advisor to the chairman of the Union of Arab Football Associations (UAFA), said: “The UAFA shall duly impose penalties against Al Ain and the UAE Football Association (UAE FA).
“There was a legal time limitation of 60 days for the UAE FA to select the dates of the UAE national team matches prior to the secretary general signing the calendar of the Arab Club Champions Cup.
“The Arab Club Champions Cup means something for us along with all athletes in the UAE and it is absolutely a very important championship.”
Met with the threat of sanctions, Al Ain coach Mamic is now scathing of Zaccheroni’s Austria camp timing.
“We are currently participating in the Arab Club Champions Cup and we also have the upcoming Super Cup (against Al Wahda in Egypt on August 25). It is not natural for the players to join the national team camp while we still have five months to the start of the Asian Cup,” said the Croatian coach.
“We have a large amount of time to prepare those (national team) players. The players should stay with their club during that time because it is better to fight a challenge (in the Arab Club Champions Cup) instead of playing in a match against a third-class team in Austria.
“I don’t think there’s a national team in the world that adopts such decisions that deprive the player of good preparation with his club before the start of the season.
“I do not consider myself a decision maker, but I am working to protect my team, myself and my club, and I’m prepared to do anything that contributes to our goals. I’m not working against the national team, on the contrary, what I say and do is directly in the interest of the national team.
“The strange thing is that the national team coach doesn’t communicate with me but I am the one that communicates with him.”
The UAE will also have external camps in Girona from September 1-12 and Barcelona from October 6-16 before internal camps from November 6-20 and December 15-31 before taking on Bahrain, India and Thailand in Group A of the Asian Cup from January 5 to February 1.
