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UAE: Al Ain FC 'takes full responsibility' for poor results, vows to return to winning ways

Sheikh Sultan bin Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan issued a statement as the club announced Leonardo Jardim will replace Hernan Crespo as coach

Published: Fri 8 Nov 2024, 6:35 PM

Updated: Sat 9 Nov 2024, 1:27 AM

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Sheikh Sultan bin Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, vice chairman of Al Ain Sports and Cultural Club board of directors (right), with new coach Leonardo Jardim on Friday. Photos: Al Ain FC/X

Sheikh Sultan bin Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, vice chairman of Al Ain Sports and Cultural Club board of directors, on Friday said that the club takes full responsibility for the team's poor performance during the current football season, and vowed that it will return to winning ways and bring the pride back to Ainawis.

Al Ain FC, the record UAE Pro League winners with 14 titles, have had a below average campaign so far, by their standards.

Nicknamed 'The Boss,' Al Ain FC have so far won only two of their five matches in th domestic league and are languishing eighth on the table.

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They have also fared no better at the continental level, with the defending champions rooted at the basement of the AFC Champions League table.

Al Ain FC are the only UAE club to win the Asian competition, and have done it twice, having triumphed in the inaugural edition in 2003.

The current campaign has seen the club part ways with coach Hernan Crespo, six months after the former Argentina striker led them to AFC Champions League glory.

On Friday, the club announced that they had appointed Portuguese coach Leonardo Jardim to replace Crespo.

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"We take full responsibility for the decline in the team’s level during the current season," Sheikh Sultan bin Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan said in a statement, posted by the club on X.

""We missed important points at the continental and local levels, but our ambitions and goals have not and will not change, and we are still looking forward to competing in all the local championships and the elite AFC Champions League competition. We have evaluated the situation and determined what needs to be done. We have hired Leonardo Jardim as the new coach. We realise that the task is difficult but it is not impossible. We are lucky and proud because we have the best and most loyal fans and we thank them for their support despite these results. We are working hard to restore the team on the right track," he added.

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Sheikh Sultan bin Hamdan added that Jardim was hired for his experience and knowledge of UAE football.

"Jardim was chosen due to his capabilities, training experience, and good knowledge of UAE football and the region, in addition to the achievements he achieved during his coaching career," Sheikh Sultan bin Hamdan, who met with Jardim during his first training session with the team, said.

Th 50-year-old Jardim had led Dubai-based Shabab Al Ahli to their eighth UAE Pro League title in his first season with the club in 2022-23 before his departure to Qatar's Al Rayyan.

Jardim also has an impressive body of work with Al Hilal, having guided the Saudi Pro League giants to a treble — the League title, the Saudi Super Cup and the AFC Champions League.

Jardim's remit would be to bring Al Ain FC to where they belong and he has been handed the reins until the end of the Fifa Club World Cup in 2025. The Club World Cup will be held in the USA from June 15 to July 13, 2025, and Al Ain have qualified for the competition, which will be played under an expanded format for the first time with 32 teams, after winning the AFC Champions League in 2023-24.

Sheikh Sultan bin Hamdan still believes that Al Ain FC can qualify for the next round of the AFC Champions League.

"Our position on the elite AFC Champions League standings is not where we expected to be as we are the defending champions. But we still have four crucial matches where we can turn it around and qualify for the next round. We have top players — a mix of youth and experience — in our ranks and we will double our efforts to ensure we progress to the next stage of the competition," he said.