Saudi Al Hilal coach Gabriel Calderon hailed Egyptian striker Ahmed Ali after leading the club to Tuesday’s valuable 3-1 win over Al Jazira in the AFC Champions League.
Ali scored the opener for the Saudi giants to put them in the lead and also to attract more attention.
“We still have to pass the remaining important games to ensure our qualification for the next round,” the Argentinean coach was quoted as saying in Saudi newspaper Al-Riyadh on Wednesday.
“I am very happy to see my strikers Ali and Yasser Al Qahtani scoring for the second successive game. This will inspire them in the coming matches,” the coach added.
The 22-year old who joined Al Hilal last January on loan from Egypt’s Ismaily is eager to continue his successful spell in the gulf.
“I won’t return to my club Ismaily at the end of the season. I want to stay with Al Hilal but if they don’t want that I will leave for another club in the gulf,” Ali was quoted as saying in Saudi newspaper Al Midan.
The Pharaoh’s star was heavily criticised for being out of form at the start of his spell with Al Hilal, but now his recent astonishing performance earned him the respect of both the club supporters and the Saudi media.
“I am not worried about not being on top form with Al Hilal until now. Those who criticised me for not scoring goals don’t know that my mission was to put pressure on the defenders to ease my teammates’ missions,” added Ali.
Ali only scored twice with Al Hilal in eight games, but he is confident he still has more to deliver.
“Every one helped me to adapt quickly and I promise to do my best to score in all the coming matches,” he concluded.
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