Al Ahli already have their hands on the Arabian Gulf League title but the Dubai club are fully aware there is plenty of work to be done before they can really enjoy that success.
The Red Knights were forced to come from a goal down against Al Wasl on Thursday night, but second-half strikes from Ahmed Khalil and substitute Grafite ensured a sixth championship.
Victory also gave coach Cosmin Olaroiu an incredible third league title in as many years in the UAE, following his back-to-back successes with Al Ain in 2012 and 2013.
However, neither the Romanian nor his coaching staff will have partied too long into the Dubai night. The Red Knights might have sewn up the league but they are still fighting on three other fronts.
Ahli have a pivotal AFC Champions League Group D clash with Al Hilal to prepare for on Tuesday, while they face Al Jazira in the final of the Arabian Gulf Cup four days later. And come the end of that game at the Hazza bin Zayed Stadium they will hope to still be in the hunt for a domestic treble, with the President’s Cup final against Al Ain to come on May 18.
“We have not finished the season yet,” assistant coach Catalin Raducan said.
“We have to prove our character for all of the season and it is very difficult. We still have three rounds in the league plus the AFC Champions League.
“The holiday for us will only begin after May 18, after our game with Al Ain in the final of the President’s Cup.”
Olaroiu was seen being hoisted by his players on the Rashid Stadium pitch on Friday night, but it seems the mood was a little more serious back in the changing room.
“The coach congratulated the players and assured them that this is not the end of the season,” Raducan added. “We have a lot of work ahead of us in different tournaments.”
Olaroiu has now done what no other coach has been able to in UAE football history – win three league titles in a row.
When the Romanian headed to Dubai in the summer, there were many who felt Ahli would have been better served sticking with incumbent Quique Sanchez Flores.
However, in the past season Olaroiu has proved himself adept at dragging an extra ounce out of his players.
Speaking to a member of the club’s back room staff ahead of last week’s game at Jazira, they revealed there had been a new intensity to everything the club had done this season.
Ultimately, that is down to Olaroiu’s coaching staff who, bar Fabio Cannavaro, made the trip from Al Ain too.
“Victory is for all members of the coaching staff,” Raducan said. “We work together and the result is the fruits of all the effort, and that which we all feel happy about.”
