Dubai: If last week’s UAE Super Cup was the appetiser, then Thursday’s repeat clash between Arabian Gulf League (AGL) leaders Al Ain and champions Al Ahli could be a main meal worth waiting for.

Defending champions Al Ahli claimed their first silverware of a dismal season so far with a hard-fought 1-0 win against The Boss in Abu Dhabi last week.

But the situation in the AGL is totally different, with Al Ain four points clear of Al Jazira and Al Shabab a further two points back. Al Wahda are in fourth, Al Nasr fifth and Al Ahli stuck in sixth place.

However, confidence is running high in the Red Knights camp following last week’s success in the Super Cup, which was delayed from the start of the season. And, with just six matches of the league campaign to go, Thursday’s encounter could go a long way to deciding who will be champions.

“We play against Al Ain again and this time the motivation for both will be completely different,” Al Ahli coach Cosmin Olaroiu told media. “We have won a highly-charged Super Cup and now we are against the leaders. The entire connection is totally different now.

“But we do know what we need to do. We need to maintain the same level, the same determination, the same attention and the same concentration when we play on Thursday.

“We will be playing against the best team in the UAE. With all their players, they are a very strong team. There can be no game that is easy against a team like Al Ain. They have a huge technical quality and we need to be aware of this fact.”

He added: “The Super Cup is the best game I have seen during the whole year so far. Although there is a lot of space for improvement, we ran more than Al Ain and showed much higher intensity in the match. We have to keep the good things that we have done and continue improving step by step.

“We have problems, but luckily these are not big problems. We know what we can do at this moment. All we need now is attention and concentration till the end.”

In other encounters this weekend, Al Shabab too will be looking to keep the pressure on the top two when they host 12th-placed Emirates Club of Ras Al Khaimah on Thursday, while on Friday Al Jazira will continue their chase of the leaders as they travel to face bottom side Kalba.

Fourth-placed Al Wahda travel to Fujairah, while fifth-placed Al Nasr will be on the road for a tricky encounter against Al Dhafra.