Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Dubai: Al Ahli coach Cosmin Olaroiu blamed the hot weather for the lacklustre display as his team were held to a 0-0 draw by Al Ain in the all-United Arab Emirates clash in the Round of 16 in the AFC Champions League on Wednesday.
Neither side was able to find a way on to the scoresheet, setting up the second leg in Al Ain next Wednesday as a winner-takes-all clash with the prize a place in August’s quarter-finals.
Al Ahli were the better side for much of the opening quarter of the game but from there the teams cancelled each other out in a game that grew increasingly scrappy.
ACL RD16: Al Ahli (UAE) 0-0 Al Ain
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“The match was hard although we had a good start in the first 20 minutes and had some scoring chances just like Al Ain,” said the Romanian. “The performance dropped in the second half as the players were affected by the hot weather.
“We missed several scoring chances in the first half but the good thing is that we didn't allow our opponents to create many chances in the second half and we kept a clean sheet. However, we didn't score and this is one of our negative aspects tonight.”
The closest Al Ahli came to scoring was in the 74th minute when Ismail Al Hammadi clipped the top of the Al Ain crossbar with a rising shot from close range that left goalkeeper Khalid Eisa flatfooted.
The draw was the second between the teams in their fourth meeting so far this season – the two other games have resulted in one win for each team – and Olaroiu will now focus on ensuring his team are ready for the second leg.
“We should try our best to improve our performance in the next match and fix the mistakes that we made tonight,” he said.
“Our main concern is taking advantage of our chances and hopefully the players will not be affected by the heavy schedule as well.”
Photo: WSG