Dubai: Al Jazira midfielder Khamis Esmail has said he’s delighted to welcome his former coach Abel Braga back to the club.
The Brazilian tactician led ‘The Spiders’ to consecutive third, second and first place finishes in the Arabian Gulf League between 2008 and 2011, picking up the 2010 League Cup and the 2011 President’s Cup along the way.
Braga was reinstated this summer after the sacking of Belgian coach Eric Gerets, who led the club to second in the league last season.
It’s hoped the 62-year-old, who joins from Brazil’s Internacional, will hold the key to taking the club a step further this season, with particular emphasis on defence. Al Jazira scored four more goals than league champions Al Ain last season but conceded 27 more than The Boss.
“Braga knows what the problem is and he’s come here to fix it,” said Esmail, on the sidelines of an Adidas event at Dubai Sports World on Tuesday.
“I’m very excited to see him come back because we won a lot of trophies with him, and we are looking forward to getting a lot more.
“Finishing second feels like finishing last, so now we are looking forward to getting first,” he added.
Since Braga’s arrival, Al Jazira have offloaded Brazilian-Palestinian midfielder Jucilei to China’s Shandong Luneng, and Hertha Berlin’s Japanese defender Hajime Hosogai has been identified as a possible Asian replacement.
Brazilian midfielder Thiago Neves has joined for €11 million (Dh44.9 million) from Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal, while the future of midfielders Manuel Lanzini from Argentina and Jonathan Pitroipa of Burkino Faso looks uncertain.
Interest in Ivorian AS Roma forward Gervinho has cooled due to technical details, not because he asked for a helicopter and a private beach, as has been widely reported, but since denied by both Al Jazira and the player.
Meanwhile, Montenegrin forward Mirko Vucinic seems to be the only foreigner that is certain to stay on from last season after topping the scorer’s charts with 25 goals.
