Sharjah’s Olariou named best coach and Mabkhout bags Golden Ball

Mohammad Abdullah, Senior Sports Reporter

Al Ain dominated the annual Pro League Awards, held at Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi on Thursday, by bagging the top honours in the three categories.

Erik Johnson won the The Golden Boy Award in the resident player category. Soufian Rahimi got the Fans’ Player of the Year honour. Whereas Al Ain was given the awards for the Professional Excellence for the Club Licensing.

The glittering ceremony was attended by stars and dignitaries of the football fraternity of the country. The awards are given in a range of categories to honour the outstanding performances of the clubs, coaches and players through of the year.

Federico Cartabia of champions Shabab Al Ahli won the The Golden Ball Award for the Best Foreign Player. Shabab Al Ahli changed the gears after the half season and left all the contenders behind to finish on the top with 57 points. They won 17 games, lost three and drew six to emerge champions.

Al Jazira prolific striker Ali Mabkhout once again bagged the Golden Ball Award for the Emirati Player category. Mabkhout scored a whopping 27 goals in 25 matches. Al Jazira finished the season on the fifth spot with 46 points.

Adel Al Hoseni bagged the Golden Glove Award for his exploits with Sharjah. He has been an integral part of Sharjah for a long time. Hoseni played a crucial role in Sharjah’s triumph of ADIB Cup and UAE Super Cup. He kept the opponents at bay delivering 50 per cent clean sheets.

Cosmin Olariou of Sharjah won the Best Coach Award for guiding his team to two titles – ADIB Cup and UAE Super Cup. Sahrjah were leading the table until the half season before the injuries to the top players dented their run in the league.

They finished on the seventh spot due a drastic fall in their performance but they made up for that by winning two titles to cap their season on a positive note.

After receiving the trophy Olariou expressed his satisfaction and delight.

“I am very happy after this honour. Though, we did not finish in the top four in the league, our boys put up an exceptional performance to win ADIB Cup and Super Cup titles.

“We are looking forward to a better season and we will give our best to the league. Due to injuries to some of the top players, our campaign was derailed after the half season,” said Olariou.

Laba Kodjo of Al Ain grabbed the Golden Shoe Award for being the top scorer of the league in the last season. Al Ain finish on the second spot in the standing with 56 points.

Kodjo played a vital role in their journey to top two finish, which also guaranteed them a place in the Asian Champions League. Kodjo scored a total of 28 goals in the 26 appearances for he club this season.

The top three finishers of the pro league automatically qualify for the Asian Champions League where as the team which finishes fourth have to go through qualifiers.

Aylton Filipe of Khorfakkan Football Club also laid his hands on Golden Shoe Award for scoring most numbers of goals in ADIB Cup.

Fabio Di Lima of Brazil, who plays for Al Wasl clinched the Goal of the Year Awards fans’ choice. Fabio is a naturalised UAE player. He also plays for the UAE national team. After winning the trophy Fabio expressed his delight.

“I am very happy and very excited. It has been an exciting journey so far in the UAE. I will try to improve my performance and win the league title for my club. I also want to win many more trophies for my club,” said Fabio.