Qader knows a thing or two about outsmarting an opponent

Abdul Wahab Abdul Qader

Abu Dhabi: Having spent 35 years coaching club and country at various levels here in the UAE, Abdul Wahab Abdul Qader knows this region better than most. Having been there and done that, the Iraqi is the veteran of UAE football and knows a thing or two about outsmarting an opponent.

He has been the go-to man in times of a crisis and he has always stepped up and delivered. His second spell with Ajman, where he guided them to the Etisalat Cup (now rebranded the Arabian Gulf Cup) in the 2012-13 season, ended after the club decided against renewing his contract.

Promoted Al Fujairah were left in a quandary after their coach Dzemal Hadziabdic, formerly with Al Dhafrah, left two weeks before this season was about to start. The club approached Abdul Wahab Abdul Qader and he readily accepted the challenge.

Their first game didn’t go according to script, losing 1-0 at home to Emirates. But facing opponents as big as title contenders Al Jazira, the Coach of Year recipient at the inaugural Etisalat UAE Pro-League awards in 2013, upstaging top names like Spaniard Quique Sanchez Flores (the with Al Ahli) and Cosmin Olaroiu (then with Al Ain), Qader out-thought his opposite number to plot a great escape.

Al Jazira were well on their way to a second win but Al Fujairah capitalised on the former’s complacency to brilliantly rally twice to hold them to a 2-2 draw.

“When you play against a team like Al Jazira, you have to be careful. They have a very good attack and are good at counter-attacks. We played with a plan that was to be more defensive and wait for the counter. Our defence did an exceptional job and so did our goalkeeper. Of course, we did manage to get to Al Jazira’s area on a couple of occasions. But, I guess, the teams were affected by the high humidity,” said Abdul Wahab Abdul Qader.

He said that they were able to play their normal game in the second half by opening up a bit more.

“In the second half, we opened up a lot more with the midfield and we also managed to minimize Al Jazira’s counter-attacks. We played a very good game. I would just say hard luck to Al Jazira and good luck to us,” said the veteran, who arrived in the UAE in 1983 and was appointed head coach of Al Shabab’s youth squad for a four-year term before he took charge at Bani Yas.

He also felt that Al Jazira were a bit over confident after the win against Ajman in the first round.

“Of course, Al Jazira were a bit over confident after winning against Ajman. But we trained in a good way and were in a good situation physically and mentally. We were prepared for it. I want to thank my players who accepted the challenge and did a good job,” said Qader, who, in 1997, was appointed head coach of the UAE Under-19 squad and was also the assistant coach of the UAE National team at the 1998 FIFA Confederations Cup in Saudi Arabia.