Winter transfers allowed UAE clubs to stock up for tough road ahead

The top of the Arabian Gulf League is a crowded place this season, a bit like Sheikh Zayed Road during peak hours.

Al Jazira and Al Ain are cruising at the head of the pack in their glittering SUVs, but Al Shabab, just a point behind, are flashing their lights like crazy and Al Wahda are floating across lanes, desperate to move forward to the top.

How times change.

The previous five league seasons ended with the champion club coasting to the finish line.

From 2010 to 2014 the winning margins were seven, 12, 14, 11 and 16 points.

It was in 2009, with Al Ahli finishing a point ahead of Jazira, when the championship was last decided in the final round.

Making any predictions is tough this time, though, as the league resumes after a 45-day break.

Jazira have, undoubtedly, been the team to watch, at least in attack, with Mirko Vucinic (16 goals) and Ali Mabkhout (nine) forming an explosive pairing.

Behind them, Argentina’s Manuel Lanzini (five goals) has been enchanting fans with his technical skills, while Jonathan Pitroipa (two goals), overshadowed by those three, has also played an invaluable part.

Those riches in attack have allowed Jazira to score 37 goals – an average of 2.85 a game – and stay at the top of the rankings despite one of the worst defences in the league.

The Abu Dhabi club have conceded 26 goals in the first half of the season. Only Ajman (28) and Kalba (32), the two teams at the bottom of the league table, have performed worse defensively.

Coach Eric Gerets has been desperately looking for solutions and has tried several partners for Musalam Fayez in central defence, including left-back Abdullah Mousa, but without any improvement.

The winter transfer window, then, has come to his rescue.

Jazira have signed veteran central defender Basheer Saeed from Al Ahli on a two-and-a-half-year deal reportedly worth Dh12 million and this could prove to be one of the shrewdest pieces of business this season.

Saeed, 33, brings a wealth of experience with him. His CV boasts five league titles (four with Wahda and one with Ahli), three President’s Cups (one with Wahda, two with Ahli) and the 2007 Gulf Cup triumph with the UAE.

He also loves playing the role of leader on the pitch, as has been seen over the past two seasons at Ahli, and that will certainly be a bonus for Gerets’s team.

Jazira have brought in another experienced campaigner as well, goalkeeper Mohammed Ali Ghuloom, on loan from Al Nasr as cover for Ali Kasheif, who missed the Asian Cup because of national service and could be absent for a few more months.

Al Ain is another to have added to their squad, signing UAE striker Saeed Al Kathiri on a two-and-a-half-year deal from Al Wasl, but Shabab and Wahda have decided not to tinker with their squads.

The Wahda coach, Jose Peseiro, even turned down the opportunity to sign Australian striker Tim Cahill.

The Portuguese also has shown confidence in the youngsters coming through the ranks at Wahda, and Caio Junior is doing the same at Shabab.

Leading a club with modest means, the Brazilian has managed to keep Shabab in the hunt, with only one point separating his team from two of the biggest spenders in the AGL.

So far, so good, but Shabab were Ahli’s closest challengers for most of last season as well, before they fell away in the final rounds to finish fifth.

When it comes to the business end, usually the clubs with big budgets and bigger squads prevail. A look at the AGL’s honour roll would testify to that.

arizvi@thenational.ae

Follow us on Twitter at our new home at NatSportUAE