AFCCL preview: Dalic upbeat ahead of Lokomotiv showdown

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  • Dalic still cuts a confident figure.

    The Boss were battered 5-1 by bitter rivals Al Ahli last Wednesday in the Arabian Gulf Cup, when the two equally understrength heavyweights – severely depleted because of international duty – clashed in Dubai. This routing has ensured a tricky build-up to Tuesday’s last-eight decider, which follows the goalless opening skirmish at Hazza bin Zayed Stadium last month.

    Despite seeing the tie against the Uzbek League leaders as finely balanced, Dalic was confident the return of star UAE players such as playmaker Omar Abdulrahman and centre-back Ismail Ahmed, allied with his troops’ excellent record on the road, could tip the odds in his favour.

    “We lost our last game 5-1, but eight of our main players were not fielded in that match,” said the 49-year-old, who guided the 2003 winners to the semi-finals of Asia’s elite club competition two years ago. “We will forget about it and will play only for victory.

    “We came here to play good football and achieve a positive result. Both teams have an equal chance after the 0-0 in the first game.

    “We respect Lokomotiv, they are the leaders of the Uzbek League now. But I believe in my players and we can reach the semi-finals, I hope.

    “We have a wonderful experience in the AFC Champions League and we recorded special results during the confrontations that we played away from home. In the last match of the round of 16, we were able to win 2-0 in the second leg at Zob Ahan in Iran after a draw in Al Ain.

    “I wish to continue in the same spirit and follow up our strong results in the AFC Champions League.”

    A seven-strong contingent – which contains centre midfielder Amer Abdulrahman, picked up in July from Bani Yas – spent much of the last two months with Mahdi Ali’s Whites squad preparing for the start of the final round of World Cup 2018 qualifying. They were only temporarily released for the first-leg stalemate on August 23, which was a tedious contest low on chances.

    Ahmed, in particular, will need to get up to speed quickly at the 34,000-capacity Bunyodkor Stadium, with regular full-backs Mohamed Ahmed and Mohamed Fayez both ruled out.

    The 33-year-old said: “The truth is that the role played by Mohamed Fayez and Mohamed Ahmed in our defensive unit is very important, but we trust in the capabilities of each other. This is because any player wearing the Al Ain badge should take on as much responsibility as possible when summoned.”

    Al Ain boast an excellent record on their travels in the ACL, losing just one and winning four of their last eight away matches.

    Andrey Miklyayev’s hosts will be bidding to halt this run. They are first-time qualifiers to the knockout stages, although an excellent 2016 has seen them suffer a solitary defeat during 33 matches in all competetions.

    “We have prepared well for the game and the team is ready if we go to a penalty shootout as well,” the Lokomotiv coach said. “I will be happy with any result that gives us a chance to play in the next round.

    “We want to qualify for the semi-finals and I think both teams are in same situation now. Al Ain have players who are at a very good level – Omar Abdulrahman and Danilo Asprilla are the most dangerous.”

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