Al Ain confirm continental exit

Al Ain added a new chapter in the failure of the UAE clubs in the AFC Champions League as they went down 3-0 to Seoul Club of South Korea. The result means Al Ain are now out of the tournament irrespective of the result of their last match in the continental competition. The fact that Al Ain fielded their youth team, with most not having featured in the UAE Pro-League (UFL), shows that the club has given priority to the next match in the domestic competition against Al Ahli on Sunday as they try to stave off relegation. Alexandre Galo, the head coach of Al Ain, did not use a single player who featured in the final of Etisalat Cup on Friday. Al Ain are 11th in the UFL and with the bottom two teams relegated at the end of the season, they have to fight for the points with only five matches remaining, in addition to their postponed match against Al Ahli. Seoul have secured their berth in the second round of the Champions League with 10 points and found no difficulty in dominating the encounter despite the rich talent displayed by the Al Ain's youngsters. Yohan put the home team into the lead in the 15th minute while his colleague Dejan added two more in the 39th and the 71st, both with headers, to seal the result for the South Korean champions. Al Ain's chances were squandered by Mohammad Abdul Rahman and Abdul Aziz Fayez. Goalkeeper Esmail Rabie saved a number of shots, but was responsible for the Koreans' third goal when he came out of his goal unnecessarily. Al Ain, the winners of the Champions League in 2003, remain at the bottom of Group F with four points from five matches. Al Wahda and Al Jazira are also bottom of their respective groups, with Emirates second from bottom in their group.