There are four reasons for the early end of Al-Ahly’s youthful career in the AFC Champions League, after being eliminated from the group stage qualifiers earlier yesterday, after losing to its hosts, Al-Nasr Al-Saudi. , 4-2. Al-Fursan went 2-1 up until the 88th minute, conceding three goals in eight minutes to bid farewell to the continental competition and start to seal qualification. Shabab Al-Ahly put up one of its best matches at the continental level, but some mistakes by the players at times of the match, especially in the last gasp, cost them the ticket to run to the group stage. Emirates Today sheds light on the most important of these reasons for Al-Ahly’s undeserved loss of youth.

Physical cargo

As a result of playing three matches at the continental and local levels, it was clear to the Al-Ahli young players that they had suffered physically. In the Al-Nasr match, especially in the last quarter, the team was clearly tired, and could not last until the end in front of the pressure of the team. Al-Nasr team Instead, the Saudi team, which was more prepared for the circumstances of its participation, adjusted the result. The Arab Championship clearly prepared the team.

Security depth

For Al-Ahly’s youth, there was a clear gap in the depth of its defence, particularly between the duo of Renan and Blahnik, as they were unable to deal with the crosses they depend on for success, especially from the left flank. , which saw the clear brilliance of Al-Alami Konan at left-back, allowing both Taliska and Sultan Al-Khanam to score three of the goals scored in a set-piece as they lacked the necessary coverage. Professional Twins.

Ignore dukkah

Al-Ahly’s youth coach, Nikolic, skipped the bench and made just one change in both halves of the match, with Tariq Ahmed coming on in the 65th minute at the expense of Hareb Suhail, despite having an experienced group of players. , particularly at the back, especially Muhammad Marsouq, who was one of the stars of the Jordanian Al-Wehdad match, which Shabab Al-Ahly won 3-0.

Attack performance

The Al-Ahly youngster’s attacking role waned from the 46th minute, especially after Yahya Al-Ghazzani scored the breakthrough goal, he did not appear much in the Al-Nasr half and the players were content to play defensive roles. In the second half, despite the obvious defensive mistakes in the back line of the Saudi team, Nawab Al-Aqidi’s goal was easy, contrary to expectations, but Ras Al-Harbi Jesus did not need to return. , it became clear that he was not technically and physically ready.

Nikolic: We don’t care

Al-Ahly youth coach Marko Nikolic praised his players’ performance despite the loss to Al-Nasr, while refusing to comment on the referee’s performance.

“It’s difficult to face a team like Al-Nassr. We played a good match and unfortunately we didn’t survive until the end,” Nikolic said in a post-match press conference.

He added, “I’m proud of my team. We fought for a long time and we lost focus in the last minutes, after Al-Nasr scored the equalizer. Thank you to our fans and everyone who supported us.”

And the Al-Ahly youth coach continued: “We had a lot of pressure with the victory in the last minutes. My team’s players did not waste time, their fitness was not weak, and our players suffered from interference.” And he added, “Winning doesn’t just depend on Ronaldo. I don’t see much of him because his team has a lot of stars like Conan, Brozovic and Mane.”