Leaving the cup and the Khor Fak point was an “alarm bell” that worried Al-Wasl

Al-Wasl received a warning bell after its sudden exit from the President’s Cup competition, against Dibba on penalties in the round of 16, a result that stopped the series of victories achieved by the team in the past weeks, before it stumbled again in a draw in the seventh round of the ADNOC Professional League against Khor Fakkan with a goal for each team, raising concern about the team’s situation before facing Bahrain’s Muharraq tomorrow in Zabeel, in the fourth round of the group stage of the “AFC Champions League 2”.

The team’s matches against Dibba and Khor Fakkan revealed some gaps in offensive focus and ending chances, despite the field control imposed by Al Wasl for long periods of the two matches. These results came at a sensitive time for the team that was taking steady and confident steps before the confrontation, which made it a warning of the necessity of reviewing the minute details and avoiding repeated stumbles at crucial dates.

The upcoming confrontation against Bahrain’s Muharraq constitutes a real test of the team’s ability to overcome the shock of exiting the cup and stumbling in the league, and quickly regain its balance, especially since any new stumble may affect its position in the ranking table and slow down the pace of competition for the top spot. Therefore, the technical staff, led by Portuguese Luis Castro, realizes the importance of returning to the tone of victories to confirm that what happened in the last two matches is just a passing setback that does not reflect the true levels that the team has performed since the start of the season.

On the other hand, Al-Wasl Club was proceeding with confidence and stability this season under the leadership of Portuguese coach Luis Castro, who restored the team’s technical identity and offensive effectiveness, to provide distinguished performances in various tournaments since the start of the season.

Despite its early loss in the second round of the ADNOC Professional League against Al Dhafra by three goals to one, that loss represented a turning point in the team’s path, as it was followed by a series of positive results that restored balance and confidence to the team at the local and continental levels.

Al-Wasl played seven matches in the ADNOC Professional League, winning four and drawing three, and its results were as follows: a victory over Baniyas 2-0 in the first round, a loss to Al-Dhafra 3-1 in the second round, a draw with Al-Ain 1-1 in the third round, a victory over Al-Bataeh 1-0 in the fourth round, a victory over Sharjah 2-1 in the fifth round, a valuable victory over Al-Nasr 2-1 in the sixth round, then a draw with Khor Fakkan. 1-1 in the seventh round.

In the “AFC Champions League 2”, Al Wasl topped the first group after achieving three consecutive victories, including two wins away from home over Al Wehdat of Jordan and Muharraq of Bahrain, raising its score to nine points, approaching early qualification to the second round, presenting strong performances that demonstrated the team’s continental character and great ambition in the tournament. The team also continued its distinguished results locally by qualifying for the quarter-finals of the Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank Cup after defeating Al Dhafra on aggregate in two home and away matches, to maintain the title. His strong presence in various competitions.

Nasser Issa: Al-Wasl needs a striker and a “tournament coach”

Sports analyst, Nasser Issa, confirmed that the loss suffered by Al-Wasl against Dibba in the eighth final of the President’s Cup will negatively affect the team’s journey in the coming period, stressing that this effect was directly apparent in its confrontation with Khor Fakkan in the league, indicating that the “Emperor” needs to sign a striker immediately in the winter transfer period, in addition to the need to evaluate the work of coach Luis Castro.

He told “Emirates Today” that exiting the cup puts the team in trouble, explaining that “a loss in any upcoming match will keep the team away from competing for the league title, so the club management must intervene decisively to adjust the team’s situation early.”

He added: “I see that the Brazilian Matheus Saldana did not provide the performance expected from him, whether in terms of numbers and the number of goals he scored, or in terms of his general level with the team.”

He continued: “I hope that the club will work to sign a striker during the winter transfer period, especially since it is clear that there is a problem in the team’s performance at the level of the offensive line, which is also due to the lack of consistency in the level of the main elements who have great experience, such as Fabio Lima and Nicolas Jimenez.” He concluded: “Al-Wasl needs a coach who competes for championships, and not just a good coach. Luis Castro has a previous experience with Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia during which he did not succeed, so he must be evaluated and paid attention to the impact of the team’s exit from the cup, so that it does not lose.” Al-Wasl has made a strong start to the current season, and is quickly returning to the path of victories.”