Al Ahli must show their ruthless side during Friday’s derby against Al Wasl to keep up the pressure in the Arabian Gulf League title fight, according to boss Cosmin Olaroiu.

The Red Knights failed to take full advantage of leaders Al Ain’s 3-2 loss to Sharjah last weekend, a 94th-minute leveller from Al Dhafra restricting them to a 2-2 draw.

Neighbours Wasl held them to a frustrating goalless stalemate last month and Olaroiu urged his players not to repeat the same mistakes at Rashid Stadium.

He said: “We played against them about a month ago and controlled the game but we couldn’t score. I hope now we will be more focused and make the most of the chances we create.

“We have prepared our team to do our best and get the result we need.”

Cheetahs boss Gabriel Calderon believes “anything is possible”, which isn’t surprising after last Thursday’s enlivening 3-2 Bur
Dubai triumph against Al Nasr.

He said: “We drew against them at home but we didn’t have any shots on target, we were lucky to get the draw. Al Ahli have 15 international players so this is a very big challenge for us, but in football anything is possible.”