One of the members of Al Ain’s Asian Champions League-winning 2003 side has backed Al Ahli to become only the second UAE team to win the competition.
Midfielder Helal Saeed was part of the team that created history when they triumphed 2-1 on aggregate against BEC Tero Sasana of Thailand in the two-legged clash in October 2013.
Saeed, 38, who is still playing for Al Ain, said he was optimistic that Ahli can get the better of Chinese side Guangzhou Evergrande.
The first leg is at Dubai on Saturday at the Rashid Stadium, and the second leg takes place in China on November 21.
“I think that the Al Ahli team is capable of achieving their dream,” he said. “They have reached the final, and I hope they return back with the title from China just like we did for Al Ain when we returned home with the trophy from Thailand.
“I have great confidence in Al Ahli and their players for the Champions League final. They will show their true mettle and I wish them luck for this great challenge.”
Ahli’s run to the final has allowed Saeed to reflect on Al Ain’s own success when they created footballing history in the Emirates.
They had little trouble getting to the last four as they won their group with a perfect record, but the semi-final had proved a tougher affair as it took Farhad Majidi’s goal three minutes from time to earn them a 7-6 aggregate win over Chinese side Dalian Shide.
Saeed said the team were pushed on by a surge of belief that they were on the verge of something big.
“We were very motivated. We knew we had an exceptional team. The fans supported us all the way through and we knew we could achieve something special,” he recalled.
“It brought happiness to the city of Al Ain and all the Emiratis in the country.”
Al Ain had home advantage for the first leg of the final at the Sheikh Tahnoon Stadium, and they made full use of Salem Johar’s long-range effort and Mohammed Omar getting on the end of a Faisal Ali centre to give them a 2-0 victory.
This is where Omar delivered his famous salute after his goal to the watching UAE royal family, which included Sheikh Mohammad bin Zayed, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, proving to be one of the country’s most iconic sporting moments.
Eight days later the second leg was at the Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok.
A penalty 30 minutes from the end halved Al Ain’s advantage, but they held on to win the tie.
“The reason for our strong performances with Al Ain was hard work,” Saeed said.
“Yes, you need talent and a bit of luck, but without hard work you have no chance.”
While Saeed is wishing Ahli all the best, he hopes it is Al Ain who will be challenging in the latter stages of the 2016 tournament if they can keep improving.
The Arabian Gulf League champions are setting the pace again this season.
“The current generation of our team has a lot of players who have similar qualities like the generation in 2003,” Saeed said. “They have the potential, but the difference between good and great is in the smallest of details,and that embodies the concept of a great team.”
sports@thenational.ae
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Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
Generation Start-up: Awok company profile
Started: 2013
Founder: Ulugbek Yuldashev
Sector: e-commerce
Size: 600 plus
Stage: still in talks with VCs
Principal Investors: self-financed by founder
Cinco in numbers
Dh3.7 million
The estimated cost of Victoria Swarovski’s gem-encrusted Michael Cinco wedding gown
46
The number, in kilograms, that Swarovski’s wedding gown weighed.
1,000
The hours it took to create Cinco’s vermillion petal gown, as seen in his atelier [note, is the one he’s playing with in the corner of a room]
50
How many looks Cinco has created in a new collection to celebrate Ballet Philippines’ 50th birthday
3,000
The hours needed to create the butterfly gown worn by Aishwarya Rai to the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.
1.1 million
The number of followers that Michael Cinco’s Instagram account has garnered.
Tips for job-seekers
- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
- Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.
David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
Tree of Hell
Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla
Director: Raed Zeno
Rating: 4/5
What should do investors do now?
What does the S&P 500's new all-time high mean for the average investor?
Should I be euphoric?
No. It's fine to be pleased about hearty returns on your investments. But it's not a good idea to tie your emotions closely to the ups and downs of the stock market. You'll get tired fast. This market moment comes on the heels of last year's nosedive. And it's not the first or last time the stock market will make a dramatic move.
So what happened?
It's more about what happened last year. Many of the concerns that triggered that plunge towards the end of last have largely been quelled. The US and China are slowly moving toward a trade agreement. The Federal Reserve has indicated it likely will not raise rates at all in 2019 after seven recent increases. And those changes, along with some strong earnings reports and broader healthy economic indicators, have fueled some optimism in stock markets.
"The panic in the fourth quarter was based mostly on fears," says Brent Schutte, chief investment strategist for Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Company. "The fundamentals have mostly held up, while the fears have gone away and the fears were based mostly on emotion."
Should I buy? Should I sell?
Maybe. It depends on what your long-term investment plan is. The best advice is usually the same no matter the day — determine your financial goals, make a plan to reach them and stick to it.
"I would encourage (investors) not to overreact to highs, just as I would encourage them not to overreact to the lows of December," Mr Schutte says.
All the same, there are some situations in which you should consider taking action. If you think you can't live through another low like last year, the time to get out is now. If the balance of assets in your portfolio is out of whack thanks to the rise of the stock market, make adjustments. And if you need your money in the next five to 10 years, it shouldn't be in stocks anyhow. But for most people, it's also a good time to just leave things be.
Resist the urge to abandon the diversification of your portfolio, Mr Schutte cautions. It may be tempting to shed other investments that aren't performing as well, such as some international stocks, but diversification is designed to help steady your performance over time.
Will the rally last?
No one knows for sure. But David Bailin, chief investment officer at Citi Private Bank, expects the US market could move up 5 per cent to 7 per cent more over the next nine to 12 months, provided the Fed doesn't raise rates and earnings growth exceeds current expectations. We are in a late cycle market, a period when US equities have historically done very well, but volatility also rises, he says.
"This phase can last six months to several years, but it's important clients remain invested and not try to prematurely position for a contraction of the market," Mr Bailin says. "Doing so would risk missing out on important portfolio returns."
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