Aguirre eyes Nasr next in AGL fixture

abu dhabi — The AFC Champions League victory saw the Al Nahyan Stadium turn into a carnival-like atmosphere with fans revelling in dance and music.

Ending a six-year gap and making it to the group stages was celebrated by one and all.

Fans favourite Sebastian Tagliabue was mobbed by fans for selfies and the star striker obliged everyone. He had scored twice in the 3-0 win over Jordan’s Al Wehdat on Tuesday night.

Tagliabue also took time to pose with a wheelchair-bound fan. The photo-ops ritual was followed by the likes of Hamdan Al Kamali, Jorge Valdivia and others. The party scene in the premises of the stadium was in stark contrast to the mood inside the media room where Al Wahda coach Javier Aguirre was already talking about the Arabian Gulf League’s Saturday match against Dubai side Al Nasr.

“I am happy with this result but am thinking about Al Nasr game now. It’s already in my head,” Aguirre said.

The Mexican did acknowledge the Champions League achievement. “We have started a new history. We want to go step by step. Al Nasr are a strong team. We too have players to choose the right team to achieve our goals.”

On his foreign players regrouping after a long gap, he said: “The foreign players are experienced and are here to make a difference. I did miss them all together for a long while. Ismail Matar and keeper Rashed Ali both were in good shape.”

Meanwhile, Al Wehdat have once again failed to clear the hurdle. Coach Adnan Hamad said the early goal ruined everything and ‘changed the course’ of the match.

“Some of the Emirati players like Ismail Mater too made the difference. We tried different things in second half but didn’t work out,” he added.

ashwani@khaleejtimes.com