AL KORONI BACKS AL ITTIHAD TO DEAL WITH GYAN THREAT

Al Ittihad coach Khalid Al Koroni has hailed Al Ain striker Asamoah Gyan as “one of the best strikers in the AFC Champions League” but insists the two-time champions can deal with the threat posed by the tournament’s leading scorer in next month’s quarter-final.

Gyan has already scored one of his 10 continental goals against Al Ittihad this season as inaugural AFC Champions League winners Al Ain earlier topped Group C despite losing 2-1 in Mekkah before sharing a 1-1 draw in the return fixture.

But after Al Ittihad secured a third AFC Champions League quarter-final appearance in four years by edging out domestic rivals Al Shabab in the last 16, Al Koroni is eyeing further progress despite the presence of Gyan.

“Gyan is one of the best strikers in the AFC Champion League, and also he was the captain of the Ghana national team at the recent FIFA World Cup,” said Al Koroni, who led Saudi Arabia to the final of the AFC U-22 Championship in January prior to succeeding Juan Verzeri as Al Ittihad coach in February.

“But we have very good and very experienced players in every position in our team, and we know what to expect as Gyan has played two matches against Al Ittihad already in the AFC Champions League this season.”

Al Ittihad will first travel to Al Ain on August 19 before the return fixture takes place a week later with Al Koroni’s side unbeaten against the Emirati side in the AFC Champions League this season.

“The situations in both matches were quite different. In the first match in Mekkah, we were in a position that we had to win the game, or at least not lose, otherwise we would have been in a bad position in the group,” he added.

“In the second match, though, we had already qualified for the next round of the competition along with Al Ain, so it really was a quite different scenario.

“After these two matches, I know a lot about Al Ain, but on the other hand, Al Ain will also know a lot about Al Ittihad from these two games.”

And ahead of the meeting with Al Ain, two-time AFC Champions League winners Al Ittihad have bolstered their line-up with the closed season acquisitions of Ivory Coast forward Didier Ya Konan, Mali midfielder Samba Diakite and Brazilian winger Marquinho.

And with Al Koroni already having forwards Mukhtar Fallatah and Fahad Al Muwallad at his disposal, Al Ittihad will look to follow up their 5-3 on aggregate win over Al Ain in the 2005 AFC Champions League final.

“Our previous success could give us more power and support, but we must put out history in the past and we will focus on this game,” added Al Koroni.

“While it is an advantage for us to play the second leg at home, we will have to work hard in the first leg as well as the second leg to help our chances of qualifying for the next round of the continental competition.

“We must work hard in all aspects with the support of the club administration and players to achieve success.”