Pitso Mosimane suffered a losing start to the new league season in the United Arab Emirates as his Al Wahda club lost at home to unfancied Al Bataeh in an upset result on Friday.
It was the South African coach’s first league game in charge of the Abu Dhabi-based side, who were expected to easily dispense with Bataeh, who they beat home and away last season and who are in only their top flight campaign.
But Mosimane’s side got stung by an early goal for the visitors from Sharjah, stuck away after only six minutes by Cameroonian striker Anatole Abang.
Al Wahda equalised from the penalty spot after 19 minutes through Brazilian Joao Pedro, one of six foreigners that Mosimane fielded.
The line-up also included ex-Brazil international Allan, who was previously at Everton in the Premier League and Napoli in Serie A.
But it was a Brazilian on the other side who snatched victory five minutes from the end as Alvaro de Oliviera scored to help snatch all three points for his side.
The defeat is a setback for Mosimane, who joined Al Wahda last month. His new team finished third in the league in the UAE – called the UAE Pro League and made up of 14 teams.
They are based in Abu Dhabi, where there will be no lack of resources. The emirate is a powerful backer of Manchester City with a myriad of sponsors from Abu Dhabi bankrolling the European champions.
Al Wahda are the second club in the city after Al Jazira, where Thulani Serero has spent the last four seasons.
Al Wahda have won four league titles and sit in fifth place in terms of overall success in the UAE championship. But the last time they took the league was in 2010 with Mosimane brought in after his success in Egypt and Saudi Arabia to end that long drought.