Sparky’s Column

The Price of Success

Omar Abdulrahman has undoubtedly been one of the stars of the season. He has taken that form onto the international stage in the warm up matches for the Gulf Cup.  The benefit of playing in the Gulf Cup will no doubt make the Al Ain midfielder’s stock rise further still. Personally it is great for the player as he looks to develop but he will be a huge miss for Al Ain during the Etisalat Cup period. Al Ain have to make a decision on their approach to the cup, they could still catch Al Wahda and even if they finish in second place they could still qualify. The club will be stretched with Asian Champions League games on the horizon as well as the league title charge.  Every club wants to win everything they enter but will it be a push for this Al Ain Squad. I am sure things will become a lot clearer after the game with Al Shaab. The UAE's newest competition is often used by clubs as a testing ground for young players with the foreign stars included as and when they are needed.  The clubs need to make a decision, for example Al Ahli, Al Shaab and Kalba currently sit rock bottom of their groups with 1 point from 3 games. Do they go for broke  in the second half of the competition in the hope of qualifying or do they put it on the back burner for the season and play younger players. I think the answer is with the younger players but a cautious approach is needed as a heavy defeat can mean a coach losing his job.

The usual big name suspects are challenging at the top of the groups with the exception except of Al Dhafra and Ajman. The two have been in and out of the top flight in the last few seasons, success for them is staying in the top division but each year everyone hopes the underdog will win one of the cups. The last was Emirates Club winning the President’s Cup, can we get the same performance in the Etisalat Cup which has been dominated by the big clubs in its 4 years of existence. Time will tell but the neutrals will be hoping for a shock.