Al Wahda down but not out, players insist

Abu Dhabi - Arabian Gulf Cup defending champions are out of contention for the top spot

Arabian Gulf Cup defending champions Al Wahda are out of contention for the top spot with three drawn matches and two loses from their five Group A encounters. The 'Clarets' are now focusing on Arabian Gulf League but yet to find a win from their two matches.
Al Wahda players, though, are putting a brave smile despite adverse results. Star striker Sebastian Tagliabue and young gun Suhail Al Mansoori are hopeful they can right the wrongs and find a way to victory.
After seven Cup and League games, they have five drawn matches. Some of them were goals conceded in the dying minutes of the match. Argentine forward Tagliabue said those were 'silly mistakes'.
"Last season too we made similar mistakes but came back strong. These are silly mistakes and we have missed one or two points every game. We drew some and lost some but we are working our way out. We will get better. We had similar results last year too," he said on sidelines of a club event on Wednesday.
Arabian Gulf League top-scorer said he needs to come good sooner than later. "The only difference between last season and now is my score. Now I missed few goal-scoring chances. Last year I didn't miss any. I hope to come back in the League with goals and everything will be back to normal at the club," said the striker who scored 25 League and seven Cup goals last season.
Tagliabue has had a mixed start to the season with four goals from five Cup matches and none from two League games.
"All this is part of the game. In the last Cup game against Sharjah, I scored from a difficult position but in the League match against Al Jazira, I was one metre away from the goal and missed."
Meanwhile, team's curly-haired Al Mansoori said the players were working their way out the hole.
"We are doing our best but we don't have the results to show. Sometimes we do make mistakes but it's same for all the big clubs around the world. We will fix this soon. The season is still in the initial stages," the midfielder said.
On his game, the Al Wahda Academy product said: "I am happy with my performance so far and will give my best. I hope to make everyone, including the fans happy."
Separately, Al Wahda FC announced that Liberty Automobiles, the sole distributor for Cadillac vehicles in the UAE, is their new official sponsor. Al Wahda FC chairman Al Rumaithi said associating with brands like Cadillac and Liberty Automobiles is a big boost for the club.
"We will have a number of community initiatives with them," he said at the Press conference.
The one-year contract will see Cadillac brand being featured on the jerseys of the players.
ashwani@khaleejtimes.com