Al Ain will be without star striker Asamoah Gyan for this evening's all-important match at Arabian Gulf League champions Al Ahli, the player has confirmed.
In a post on his official website, Gyan announced that he has not recovered from the thigh strain that kept him out of Al Ain's 2-1 win over Emirates on Wednesday.
The Ghanaian returned to light training on Saturday evening but has not made enough progress in his recovery to feature tonight. He has so far scored two goals in the AGL this season.
The statement said that despite making "steady progress in recovery", Gyan is not match fit for the tie at Ahli's Al-Rashid Stadium.
Gyan's injury will come as a blow for Zlatko Dalic, who was also unable to name key men Jires Kembo-Ekoko and Omar Abdulrahman in The Boss' last outing.
The website post does, however, state that the Black Stars captain is likely to be fit for Al Ain's next outing against Al Jazira on November 6 before he heads off to the African Cup of Nations with his country.