Olaroiu adds fuel to the fire, casting Al Ahli future in doubt

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  • Cosmin did not dampen speculation.

    The Romanian boss had cast doubt on his commitment to the Red Knights following last week’s 2-2 draw with Bani Yas which saw him sent to the stands for protesting referee Ahmed Salim Khalfan’s decisions.

    Ahli had already sealed the Arabian Gulf League title prior to the match, but the late dismissal of Khamis Esmail, followed by Olaroiu’s sending off, placed a dark shadow over what should have been a celebratory moment.

    Olaroiu, who refused to take questions from the press that day, made his own statement in Romanian saying he works where he is “appreciated”, adding: “I hope whoever is replacing me does well at Al Ahli and I hope the club does well after me.”

    Addressing the media for the first time since, Olaroiu on Friday was vague in his comments while refusing to explicitly extinguish exit talks ahead of Ahli’s final league game of the season against Al Shaab on Sunday.

    “Nobody cares, believe me,” the 46-year-old said when asked if he was leaving the club.

    “Everyone judges what I say and what I’ll do. There is another possibility that exists no? The club does not want to continue with me, that possibility also exists, no? Why is that possibility not taken into consideration?”

    Olaroiu, who has guided his side to the Champions League final and five trophies – including two AGL crowns – since he joined Al Ahli from Al Ain in the 2013-2014 season, insists there are people who are not happy with the job he is doing at the club despite his success on the pitch.

    “Some people they aren’t satisfied with the performance that we have but this is what I can do, five competitions and four finals until now, we have one more and I hope to win the sixth. I know and heard that some people aren’t very happy with me,” he said.

    “Maybe I’m crazy, or maybe I’m over-eager. But everything I do is aimed at doing the best job possible so I can help the players and help them win in the end. But I will never be anybody’s toy.”

    While Olaroiu refused to state which “people” he is referring to, and wouldn’t respond when asked if they were members of the Ahli’s management or board, he was clear in saying he has not sought out any other club for a job.

    “I heard that I have offers to go I don’t know where. I swear that I never talked with somebody and I never thought to go to another team, I never considered this,” he explained.

    Not only does Olaroiu feel underappreciated, but he also believes he is being treated unfairly by the referees, having been sent off numerous times throughout this campaign.

    “You suggest to me what I can do next year? I will be (sent off) each game, because right now I have an average of getting sent off every two games,” he said sarcastically.

    Adding to his lengthy list of grievances, Olaroiu revealed he is uneasy about the club’s preparations for next season with a large chunk of his squad set to spend the summer training with Mahdi Ali and the UAE national team ahead of September’s third round of World Cup qualifiers.

    “Tell me what to do. To train who? Tell me. Train who? I have the experience from the past years. In the first year all the players trained with Al Ahli and they won three competitions. This year, they trained with Al Ahli and they played the final of the Champions League, they should play the final of Etisalat Cup, they won the league… Next year, they will not train with me, then what can I do? Last year, they didn’t train with us and you saw the first part of the season,” said an irate Olaroiu.

    “Maybe in the national team they are training better, I can’t comment on that, maybe they’re training three times better, but when they train with us they perform better, I don’t know why.”

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