Al Jazira head coach Henk ten Cate was happy to progress to the quarter-finals of the President’s Cup, but felt his side wasted a lot of chances to make their 1-0 win against Al Dhafra more comfortable.

The Pride of Abu Dhabi were second best in a first half dominated by Dhafra, but were guilty of missing a glut of second half chances to put the game to bed, with Kenwyne Jones and Thiago Neves each squandering golden opportunities.

“It was a tough game for us to be in, but we could have decided it earlier if we’d scored two or three more goals. We had so many big chances,” said the Dutchman, who admitted that a fifth win domestically in a row has made for a great atmosphere around the club.

“We have won the last five games so we are in a good spell. Team spirit is high. The defence is getting better and better and I’m very happy we didn’t concede a goal today. It was a good test for us because Dhafra has a physically strong team and I think we did well.”

Opposite number Mohamad Kwid also bemoaned a string of missed chances by his team, but was more unhappy that their appeals for a spot kick in the second half were ignored by the referee.

“It is the first time I speak about the referee,” said Kwid. “Makhete Diop has a clear penalty but the referee didn’t give it. This is football and we have to accept it.”

Dhafra midfielder Abdulla Al Naqbi was equally incensed and said: “Dhafra played better than Jazira. I don’t want to talk about the referee, but he gave Jazira a penalty, but he did not give the penalty against Makhete Diop.”