Interesting times ahead after shake-up in UAE clubs

Sheikh Mohammed ordered the three clubs to become one entity with the new club set to be named called 'Shabab Al Ahli Dubai Club' with Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, being named chairman of the new club.

Dubai - It means there will be one club competing in the Arabian Gulf League, the Arabian Gulf Cup, the President's Cup, and perhaps, also the AFC Champions League

With a major shake-up in UAE football taking place on Tuesday, it will be interesting to see how it all shapes up over the coming days.
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, on Tuesday, ordered the merger of Al Ahli, Al Shabab and newly promoted Dubai with the three clubs set to become one entity called 'Shabab Al Ahli Dubai Club.'
It means there will be one club competing in the Arabian Gulf League, the Arabian Gulf Cup, the President's Cup, and perhaps, also the AFC Champions League.
A Higher Committee chaired by Khalifa Saeed Sulaiman, Director General of the Department of Protocol and Hospitality in Dubai, and which includes Sami Al Qamzi, Director General of the Department of Finance, Ahmed bin Humaidan and Abdullatif Al Sayegh, have been tasked with overseeing the merger process.
In the coming days or weeks, it remains to be seen who will be the new coach and the playing staff. It is being said that players from Al Ahli, Al Shabab and Dubai FC will be picked to form the new team.
But things get interesting when it comes to the coach. Cosmin Olaroiu, who won The Leader Award for the best coach, at the Arabian Gulf League Awards in Abu Dhabi on Monday night, is currently the coach of Al Ahli.
Al Shabab were set to announce Serbian Goran Tufegdzic, who coached relegated Ittihad Kalba, as a replacement for compatriot Miroslav Dukic on Tuesday, but had to cancel the press conference. Dubai FC are coached by Hany Guda Ramzy.
Of immediate concern will be how would Al Ahli compete in the AFC Champions League this season and the next. They are in the Round of 16 of the Asian competition this year and are set to take on Saudi Arabia's Al Ahli in Jeddah on May 22 with the return leg at home on May 29.
Al Ahli are also in the play-off of the continental competition next year after finishing third in the Arabian Gulf League in the just concluded season.
With this new development, could we see Al Ain, who missed out by finishing fourth, be handed an entry back to the AFC Champions League.
Al Ahli itself was formed through a merger after Al Wehdah and Al Shabab joined forces in 1970. Four years later, Al Najah Club too joined Al Ahli.
Meanwhile, the UAE Football Association (UAE FA), the governing body for football in the country as well the Pro League Committee (PLC), which ensures the smooth conduct of the different competitions, have to not just negotiate many a thing but also formulate a new plan.
The PLC had conducted the draw for the Arabian Gulf League and the Arabian Gulf Cup for next season, on the sidelines of the Arabian Gulf League Awards.
But that will now have to be reworked by the UAE FA as well as the PLC. With the merger, there will be three lesser teams in the League and the Cup as well as the President's Cup.
The UAE FA and the PLC will have to take the call on whether the League, which has comprised 14 teams since the 2012-13 season, will remain so or reduce to 12.
Previously, there were 12 teams until then UAE FA President Yousuf Al Serkal and the FA board of directors, passed a resolution in 2012 to increase the teams to 14.
A relegation play-off was held between promoted sides Al Shaab and Al Dhafra as well as the relegated teams Al Sharjah and Emirates.
That could be an option but the official FA spokesman Hassan Al Jasmi denied that there would be a play-off tournament between four teams.
Ajman and Dubai FC were promoted this season, while Ittihad Kalba and Bani Yas were relegated.
This could also possibly open the door for Al Oruba and Fujairah, who finished third and fourth in the First Division. Argentina legend Diego Maradona has been roped in by Fujairah as their coach.
james@khaleejtimes.com