Schaefer warns his players

Dubai: Al Ahli football coach Winfried Schaefer has urged his players not to rest on their laurels and get slack during the summer after last month's long-awaited league championship triumph.

The German coach set his sights on winning both the President's Cup and the UAE League next season. He said the season would be tougher than ever and the team had to keep sharp during the summer.

He warned that he would not tolerate slacking when the new season began.

"The break is necessary to recharge, but the players will also have to ensure they stay keen for future battles during the next season," Schaefer told Gulf News.

"The summer months are as important as the normal season, and it would be unwise if the players let their guard down and fell into a sort of lethargy during this period."

Schaefer was speaking at Al Ahli's annual awards ceremony held at Al Boom Village late on Wednesday after the club's memorable league triumph following a 26-year wait.

"There is no doubt that all of us deserve this honour," he said.

"But now that we have achieved this, there is no time to allow things to go out of our reach. We need to be vigilant and keep the momentum going into the next season."

After languishing without a league title for nearly three decades, Al Ahli go into the next season as favourites. "But there are other quality teams and all of them want to win. The situation is quite different now because we enter the new season as the defending champions," Schaefer said.

"As the champions, there is bound to be pressure on the players.

"But as true champions we need to know how best to deal with this pressure and perform to our maximum ability."

Schaefer admitted that one of the disadvantages of being champions is the hunger of other teams. "Things won't be easy for us as everyone will want to defeat us," he said.

"As the champions, we need to drive home the point that we have to work extra hard in staying at the top. Nothing is going to come easy. In fact, it will be tougher now than ever."

He warned that he would not tolerate any player who was not ready to work hard next season, saying: "I will not accept anyone who is willing to compromise on work. Mere hard work is not what we will be looking out for at the club next season.

"We want hard work and discipline to go hand in hand, and only then will we be able to see the team achieve even bigger things.

"I think a couple of titles, namely the President's Cup and the UAE League seem to be a realistic goal for next season. We have the quality of players and I think we can win both," Schaefer added.

"As the champions, we need to drive home the point that we have to work extra hard in staying at the top. Nothing is going to come easy. In fact, it will be tougher now than ever."