Omar Abdulrahman will not fulfill European destiny, but another pioneer for UAE is close

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Mail
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • WhatsApp
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • The path to Europe, seemingly, will forever remain untrodden by Omar Abdulrahman.

    UAE football’s crown jewel and one of the Middle East’s great players has, apparently, given verbal consent to a three-year contract extension at Al Ain.

    The unattached status which offered freedom for the 2016 AFC Player of the Year to choose his own destiny has ended up with the status quo remaining.

    Mystery exists about whether this guarantees 2018/19 will be spent back on loan at boyhood club Al Hilal – the reigning Saudi Professional League champions and the region’s defining force.

    But what is becoming abundantly clear is Amoory will not undertake a historic permanent switch west to the sport’s heartland.

    The limitless potential unearthed to an electrified global audience at the London 2012 Olympics will go unfulfilled.

    Instead, the 26-year-old playmaker has consented to spend the prime years of his career in familiar territory. At the Garden City which embraced him, or Riyadh which formed him.

    It is left to others to break the cycle.

    A ground-breaking transfer appeared predestined when he electrified the uninitiated at the London 2012 Olympics and saw a move to Manchester City halted by work-permit problems.

    This sense of inevitably has steadily dissipated as suitors ranging from Arsenal to Nice have been knocked back, via Al Ain’s intransigence and Amoory’s indifference.

    Following in his footsteps: Ismail Matar never made the move to Europe, despite his starring role at the 2003 FIFA U-20 World Cup in the UAE.

    Following in his footsteps: Ismail Matar never made the move to Europe, despite his starring role at the 2003 FIFA U-20 World Cup in the UAE.

    A complete lack of surprise defines his latest choice. Even though teams from France, Spain and the Netherlands were still prepared to gamble on him, despite travails for club and country in 2017/18.

    This stands in stark contrast to peers across the Asian game.

    Outstanding South Korea midfielder Lee Jae-sung was a key component of the Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors side which denied Amoory success in the 2016 AFC Champions League final.

    Steady planning of the 25-year-old’s career path witnessed a €1.5 million (Dh6.4m) move agreed with 2. Bundesliga challengers Holstein Kiel last month.

    Rather than take the easy route and remain in K League 1, or sit on the bench at a bigger European club, he’s already put fallen giants Hamburg to the sword during the weekend’s 3-0 thrashing.

    Teenage winger Daniel Arzani provided a rare bright spot for Australia as they went winless at World Cup 2018.

    Where Amoory eschewed the option to come into the City system when alternative destinations in France were offered, Arzani has embraced a grand opportunity.

    The youngest player on show in Russia is set to transfer from Melbourne City to the parent club, prior to completing a two-year loan to Scottish Premiership heavyweights Celtic.

    This is an example of what could have been for Amoory six years ago.

    Make your own way: Saudi Arabia's Sami Al Jaber experienced a mixed time on loan at Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2000.

    Make your own way: Saudi Arabia’s Sami Al Jaber experienced a mixed time on loan at Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2000.

    Elsewhere, Japan centre-back Naomichi Ueda, 23, has swapped Kashima Antlers for Belgium’s Cercle Brugge.

    Economic forces have regularly sent players from the east of the AFC to Europe in search of greater financial rewards.

    In return, nations such as South Korea, Japan and Australia are now regular World Cup entrants.

    Saudi Arabia icon Sami Al Jaber’s ill-fated, four-game spell at Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2000 stood as an outlier in the oil-rich Arabian Gulf.

    Abdulrahman’s lack of adventure has echoes of Al Wahda veteran Ismail Matar. The 2003 FIFA U-20 World Cup Player of the Tournament declined invitations from Chelsea and Internazionale, with his only spell abroad coming on loan at Qatar’s Al Sadd nine years ago.

    Amoory could be the last of this kind.

    Several Arab nations have forged links with European clubs and competitions in recent years, providing essential exposure to the professional game.

    Winger Salem Al Dawsari struck the late winner for Saudi against Egypt at the World Cup. He was one of nine of his countrymen loaned to Spanish outfits last January, making his La Liga debut for Villarreal as a substitute against Real Madrid.

    Even in the UAE, Al Ain prospect Ali Eid, 20, will hone his striking skills at Croatia’s Dinamo Zagreb during 2018/19.

    Revered coach Henk ten Cate departed Al Jazira last summer hoping 21-year-old defender Mohammed Al Attas makes a similar decision.

    The convoluted introduction of a salary cap in the Arabian Gulf League should further benefit this drive.

    Amoory will not be UAE football’s great pioneer. But much is in place for one to emerge.

    Recommended