Al Wahda boss Sami Al Jaber confident despite Asian Champions League elimination

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  • Upbeat: Al Wahda boss Sami Al Jaber believes the best is yet to come after their Asian Champions League elimination.

    Sami Al Jaber has refused to be down-heartened after seeing his debut as Al Wahda boss end in a roller-coaster AFC Champions League elimination.

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    The Saudi Arabia icon manned the Clarets dugout for the first time last night, his side – who were down to nine men – being defeated 5-4 on penalties by Al Sadd after a one-off qualifier that was drawn 4-4 at the end of extra time.

    The harrowing loss means his new club will not feature in the group stage of the continent’s premier club competition, but the 42-year-old believed his new team could take much from the heart-racing contest.

    “No-one accepts to lose but I am so proud of my players,” said Al Jaber, who was classed as technical director for the night as his succession from Jose Peseiro last week came too late to be classed as coach.

    “They have shown a fighting spirit and courage. We have great potential in this team because of this spirit. We are sorry for this loss. 

    "We promise better performance in the future. We played against a strong opponent, with a lot of experience in the AFC Champions League – but we still deserved to qualify. We have the same ambitions and spirit. I thank the fans for their support.

    “I don’t like to talk about the referees. He is part of the game. It was a wonderful game, and I wish both teams could have made it to the group stage.”

    Wahda were inspired by UAE veteran Ismail Matar at Al Nahyan Stadium. He had a hand in two goals and scored the free-kick to make it 4-4 after coming off the substitute’s bench, added joy coming from the fact he spent an unhappy loan spell at Al Dheeb in 2009.

    “Ismail Matar is a great player, who is very important for us,” Al Jaber said. “He moves in and out, he is one of the iconic players of UAE football.

    "He made a great difference  once he was on the pitch. We have a great team, and I am proud of all of them.”

    A ruckus after Wahda had gone 3-2 ahead in second-half injury time saw Damian Diaz and Adel Hermach dismissed, along with visiting defender Mohammed Kasola. 

    Sadd boss Hussein Amotta expressed his upset with both his side’s finishing and the performance of referee Abdullah Mohamed Al Hilali.

    He said: “I believe everyone enjoyed tonight’s game. We missed chances and suffered to win. Unfortunately, the referee made
    mistakes.”

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