Sport | Football
'We must keep winning spirit alive'
One of the top officials from Al Shabab wants to ensure the club's new-found winning spirit is kept intact despite all the challenges looming ahead.
- By Alaric Gomes, Senior Reporter
- Published: 00:19 May 23, 2008
- Image Credit: Abdul Rahman/Gulf News
- Al Shabab, winners of the etisalat First Division title, during the presentatoin ceremony at Mohammad Bin Zayed Stadium at Al Jazira Sports Club in Abu Dhabi.
Dubai: One of the top officials from Al Shabab wants to ensure the club's new-found winning spirit is kept intact despite all the challenges looming ahead.
"Our team has discovered the taste of winning and we want to keep this alive for a long, long time," Abdul Kader Hassan, member of the board of directors of Al Shabab told Gulf News as they prepared a special celebration at the main stadium yesterday.
"As officials, we are here to ensure that all our players get only the best from the club because they deserve the best," Hassan said. Hassan is no stranger to success with Al Shabab. He was a member of the UAE national squad from 1979 till his retirement in 1992. He was a member of the team that won the league title on two previous occasions and he was also a part of the UAE side that went to the Fifa World Cup in Italy in 1990.
"I have enough experience to know what it means to win trophies and now, we need to continue with this winning spirit," Hassan said.
Challenges
The former UAE goalkeeper is keen to see this young team surpass the past achievements of the club.
"No doubt, we have achieved a lot with Al Shabab. But I can confidently see this team do much better than what we did."
"I can only hope that this year's league title is the first of many successes in the future. And from experience, I know that whoever wins once always wants to keep the winning mentality," he added.
The board member paid tribute to former Brazilian World Cup member and Al Shabab coach Toninho Cerezo and his coaching staff. "We supported them in all possible ways, but ultimately it is the coach and his staff that made this success possible for Al Shabab.
"No one was after his own interests as everyone was thinking of how to contribute and bring success to the club."
The former Al Shabab that the club's top priority will be centred around its players. "We have ensured they were in their best form through the entire season. There are further challenges before us and we will take care of our players so that they can keep this legacy running."
He also saluted the grit and determination of the team. "We cannot identify a single star, but we had a team in the complete sense of it. Even when they were down, the players believed in themselves and fought their way to the title," Hassan said.
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