Sport | Football
Ze Mario: Let's not worry about Cup final
The Al Wasl coach, Brazilian Ze Mario, said he was not worried about the President's Cup final against Al Ahli on Monday.
- By Sayed Ali, Senior Reporter
- Published: 23:38 April 8, 2008
Dubai: The Al Wasl coach, Brazilian Ze Mario, said he was not worried about the President's Cup final against Al Ahli on Monday.
"We are focusing on the Kuwait match today. I told the players not to think about the Cup final. First we have to win the three points today to revive our hopes of reaching the Asian Champions League quarterfinals," he said at a press conference.
Ze Mario said his team will suffer from fatigue and stress for having to play three tough matches in 10 days. Last Friday, they had met Al Nasr in the UAE First Division League. Today they take on Kuwait, while on Monday, they play against Al Ahli in the President's Cup final.
"It's true playing a match every three days will make players suffer from fatigue, but we have to play and the players have to get accustomed to this situation. We do not make excuses. Our team is ready for matches at any time and I have confidence in my players," he said.
Eyeing a win
Farouq Korovic, the assistant coach of Kuwait, said they were looking to win the match and top the group. "We played only two matches at home, without winning any, but we didn't lose a game either. So, a win today will put us on top of the group and revive our hopes of reaching the quarterfinals," said Korovic.
Ahmad Al Subaih, the Kuwaiti team skipper, said Al Wasl were a strong team and it would be a tough match today. "Al Wasl are a very good team and have excellent players from Brazil. The Emirati players like Khalid Darwish can create problems for any team," Al Subaih said.
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