Al Jazira coach Abel Braga believes the absence of Chilean playmaker Jorge Valdivia will galvanise Abu Dhabi rivals Al Wahda when the two meet in the capital city clash on Friday.
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The 31-year-old midfielder will miss the Abu Dhabi derby after he was handed a two-match ban and fined Dh15,000 by the UAE Football Association for appearing to make an inappropriate hand gesture to Al Shabab fans during the 1-0 loss suffered by Wahda at Al Nahyan Stadium on Sunday.
The former Al Ain midfielder was caught on camera, with videos later appearing on social media.
Cracking debut for Jorge Valdivía for Al-Wahda. Fined & suspended for two matches for ‘making an offensive gesture.’ https://t.co/Rkv6u15pY3
— Tim Stillman (@Stillberto) September 15, 2015
Pride of Abu Dhabi boss Braga said: “What happened was within the law and Al Wahda have suitable alternatives. Valdivia’s absence may be a positive point for them. It may raise the morale of the players and we will have to deal with the situation with caution.”
Wahda released a statement following the Shabab defeat, which said: “Jorge Valdivia has insisted that the hand signal in the match between Al Wahda and Al Shabab was directed at a group of friends who had attended the match, no one else.
“It is a sign regularly exchanged between friends in Brazil and Portugal as a joke and does not hold any negative intentions.”
That did not stop the UAE FA, however, from imposing the ban and the penalty. Although Jazira beat Sharjah 2-1 in their last match, Brazilian Braga was not satisfied with the performance and stressed his team need to get a positive result out of the derby encounter.
“We will enter the meeting with all our strength. Time was a bit tight to prepare for a big derby match but we are ready,” said the 62-year-old.
Elsewhere, former Real Madrid winger Royston Drenthe could make his Bani Yas debut when the Sky Blues take on Fujairah. The free agent signed a one-year deal last week, and coach Luis Garcia says there is a possibility the Dutchman could feature.
“Royston has only been with us for a few days so he is still lacking match fitness,” said the 42-yearold Spaniard. “Although he will not start, I could bring him off the bench.”
Drenthe joins a team which sit atop the Arabian Gulf League on goal difference after 2-0 and 3-0 victories over Al Shaab and Dibba Al Fujairah respectively, and Garcia has warned his defenders must be on top of their game if they want to keep another clean sheet and make it three from three.
“The match is very important for us as we’ve had a good run lately,” said Garcia. “We will not be taking Fujairah lightly. They are a good team and are very dangerous when they counter attack so we must be careful and defend well.
“We’ve been defending very well this season and I hope we can keep another clean sheet and continue our good form.”
In the other Friday game, Al Shaab and Emirates Club will both be looking for their first points when they meet at Khalid bin Mohammed Stadium.
