Al Wahda coach Manuel Jimenez said that Annabi captain Ismail Matar is "the most important player in the UAE at the moment", but declined to comment on the decision of the national team coach, Dutch Marvik, not to call the player for the squad that played in the last match Vietnam In the double qualifiers of the 2022 World Cup and the 2023 Asian Cup, despite the great experience enjoyed by Matar.

Matar has shone remarkably in his last league games in the league, but that has not helped him to return to the White squad since Marvik took over in March.

Responding to questions from Emirates Today, after his 1-0 win over Ajman in the fifth round of the Arabian Gulf Cup to ensure a passage to the quarter-finals, Jimenez said: “For me Matar is the most important local player in the period. Today, as a coach I felt every day its value in the locker room, and his wonderful personality, he is a leader in the full sense of the word, trained more wonderfully, and dedicated to the service of the team, and do everything required of him with high efficiency, as for the decision of Marvik not to call him to the squad The Emirati has no comment on this aspect, this is a decision for the coach, but as for the player, I said my opinion Ye severe »frankly.

Regarding Al Wahda's Cup career, after securing the second-round card, Jimenez said that all he cared about was winning every game, regardless of anything else. “I learned from the training lessons that every game I play is only thinking about winning,” he said. My philosophy, which I have tried to apply since I came to train the unit, and I must not care about a game or tournament at the expense of the other, but we must play on all tournaments, and win in all games ».

The coach expressed his happiness with the evolving level of the ball in the UAE, saying that the local league has become attractive to the big names of players and coaches. Emirati, and what satisfies the masses ». Regarding the upcoming pause for local competitions, he said that he is committed to all the decisions issued in this regard. He added: “We only need to train on a daily basis and continue to work permanently to prepare the team for the entitlements associated with it. "Let's talk about the next stage. Can we have a camp during the break or not, but it is certain that the daily training will not stop."

`` It was an opportunity to explore new talent for the club, educate these players to play to win, and learn a variety of ways of play, '' the coach said.``They performed amazingly and they will be a strong support for the team in the future. "They showed a tremendous ability to play tough games with calm and confidence reflecting a strong personality, despite their young age."

Ramadi: Ajman problem in the substitute player

Ajman coach Ayman Al-Ramadi expressed his grief over the loss of the opportunity to qualify directly to the second round of the Arabian Gulf Cup, and now bet on the results of others, said at the press conference: «We lost the opportunity that was in our hands, and we could not beat Al-Wahda, although "The game was within our reach."

Ramadi refused to criticize the level of foreigners, saying that the responsibility is shared, but stressed that the problem of Ajman is that the "alternative player" does not have the competence of the same basic.

"We have good foreigners, but we are always waiting for the best in the games," he said. "They are an important part of the team system, but I think the main reason for the decline in results is because of the alternative we have made in the games, which did not make us the difference we had hoped."

He continued: «If we get out of the Arabian Gulf Cup, it will be our own hands and not the hands of others, we entered this competition and our goal was to compete for the title, but things did not go as we planned, and this needs to review our accounts again, and regain the most important advantage "We were enjoying it among the professional clubs, that we are a diligent team, and we must return to our diligence in the games again to improve the results."

Al Wahda defeated Ajman 1/0 in the Arabian Gulf Cup and secured qualification to the second round.