Crisis club Al Jazira are set for a shake-up after they accelerated talks to bring in former West Ham United technical director Gianluca Nani.
Nani, 53, is expected to return to the capital next week for further discussions about the upstairs role. The Italian has been out of work since he resigned from Watford in September 2014, with the squad he built then going on to achieve promotion to the Premier League.
The Pride of Abu Dhabi have endured a miserable campaign under returning boss Abel Braga, a side who were tipped for an Arabian Gulf League title push currently sitting 10th after Sunday’s 3-2 loss to second-placed Al Nasr.
There are no solid moves at present to dispense with the Brazilian who enjoyed a contrasting trophy-laden opening spell with them from 2008-11, sizeable financial penalties tied into the deal signed until 2018 if he was to be sacked in his first season.
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But Nani will be tasked with providing guidance in scouting, player recruitment, training methods and development as his prospective employers look to correct their free fall from being runners-up under sacked coach Eric Gerets last term.
Jazira have employed Ayed Mabkhout as sports manager since a summer revamp saw him promoted from first-team manager following long-serving CEO Ammar Bashir’s resignation and first-team supervisor Mohammed Salem’s departure.
Nani earned a reputation for nurturing talent at Italian side Brescia when employed as sporting director, helping develop 2006 World Cup winners Andrea Pirlo and Luca Toni. He then went on to take up the same position at West Ham seven years ago, but was dismissed in February 2010.
The qualified lawyer then teamed up once again with ex-Hammers boss Gianfranco Zola and chief executive Scott Duxbury at Watford in July 2012. Working alongside owners the Pozzo family, he successfully recruited players from across the world as he laid the foundations for the squad which currently sits 13th in the English top flight.
Meanwhile, star Jazira striker Mirko Vucinic has vowed to come back “stronger than before” after he successfully underwent surgery on the serious knee injury which should sideline him for the rest of 2015/16.
Successful Surgery for @MirkoVucinic in Rome. details: https://t.co/RGD9rTkFTS pic.twitter.com/tGSOApblpJ
— AlJazira FC Official (@AlJazira_uae) November 24, 2015
Vucinic, 31, suffered a tear in his cruciate ligaments from a tackle by Fujairah defender Waleed Al Yamahi during last week’s 1-1 draw in the Arabian Gulf Cup.
On Monday in Rome, Professor Pierpaolo Mariani operated on him for the second time in his career after a previous procedure eight years ago when playing for Roma.
“The operation went well,” Vucinic tweeted yesterday. “ALWAYS SMILING! See you soon, stronger than before!”
Vucinic proved a roaring success in 2014/15 after he joined from Serie A champions Juventus, top scoring with 25 AGL goals. Prior to his knee problem, he had struck five times in nine games across all compeitions.
