Rodolfo Arruabarrena liked what he was seeing.
A thumping header from Caio Canedo deep into first-half injury-time made it two for the striker and 3-1 to Al Wasl, completing a rapid turnaround from a losing position against Al Dhafra.
The Argentine supremo reacted on the touchline with an outburst of passion incongruous to an appearance which is reminiscent of a dreary accountant, all plain shirt and tie plus regulation haircut.
His fist pumps upon an enjoyable home bow in the Arabian Gulf League marked a fine response after the chasing given to them by Al Jazira last week.
“It’s not easy to come back after one defeat to Al Jazira,” Arruabarrena said. “But we have to carry on improving because this is only the beginning.”
The Western Knights could not contain the host’s vibrant attack in this eventual 4-1 loss, despite their own prolific striker Makhete Diop being in place to open the scoring with a tap-in from Syria forward Omar Khrbin’s low cross just before the half-hour mark.
ترتيب الفرق بعد الجولة 2 من #دوري_الخليج_العربي
— Arabian Gulf League (@AGLeague) September 24, 2016
The #AGLeague standings after Round 2 pic.twitter.com/pXZoV6jCp8
This was the Senegal international’s 68th top-flight goal in 98 appearances at a club for whom last term’s lofty eighth-placed finish necessitated a nose bleed. But two losses on the spin have been accrued, with boss Mohammed Kwid unsettled by what he had seen.
He said: “In seven minutes, the match was finished. We didn’t even play to 50 per cent of our ability, but we can come back.”
A perfect reaction to Diop’s effort was witnessed, Portugal winger Helder Barbosa looking a smart pick-up from AEK Athens. Forward Fabio De Lima’s low free-kick skimmed in from 30 yards, then Caio first followed in goalkeeper Abdulla Sultan’s spill before straining his neck muscles to turn in right-back Khalid Sabeal’s centre.
Victory was assured after the break, midfielder Khaleil Khameis opening his Wasl account with a rebound after De Lima – who struck 20 times last term – struck the base of the post.
