Al Jazira head coach Damien Hertog wants to see a reaction from his players when they face Ajman in Friday’s Arabian Gulf League clash.
Al Jazira welcome Ajman to the Mohammed bin Zayed stadium with the hosts aiming to pick up maximum points following last week’s 2-1 defeat to Baniyas.
Hertog admitted his players were frustrated with the loss but backs them to play to their potential in front of their home fans this weekend.
“We were disappointed after the Baniyas game,” said Hertog during the pre-match press conference. “It was the first time this season that I was not happy with a performance.
“But we have analysed that game, had some rest and good training sessions and must now look ahead to Ajman. We have to react immediately when we play Ajman and this is important. We had a good week of training and the team spirit is very good within the camp. We have done a lot of preparation to face Ajman and I hope the players can play much better this time.”
Al Jazira will be without defenders Salem Al Eidi, Mohamed Al Attas and long-term casualties Mohamed Jamal and Ahmed Rabia.
Despite the absences, Hertog believes they have enough quality and expects them to start strongly against Ajman.
“We conceded twice in the first 17 minutes and I told the players that was unacceptable,” he said.
“They understand they have to play better and start all the matches strongly. I’m sure we will do that against Ajman.”
Victory on Friday would boost Al Jazira’s chances of maintaining their league position where they sit third – nine points off the top. While Hertog is pleased with the progress, he reiterated there has been no talk within the camp of winning the AGL title this season.
“We have raised the expectations as we have performed very well so far,” he added. “We have beaten a lot of strong teams so far. We have the ambition to be the best team in the country and win every game. But we have never spoken about winning the title as our ambition this season is winning every game.”
Defender Khalifa Al Hammadi said the team is ready to put on a strong performance against Ajman. “We have trained very hard during the week after a disappointing defeat,” he said. “We are ready to challenge against Ajman and we will aim to win the match.”
