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Does not possess a magic wand: why did Al-Ahly move to sign Posecnik?

A dangerous bet!

Al-Ahli have entered a new phase with the official signing of the Dutchman Marino Pusic, who takes over from the German Matthias Jaissle, the man who guided the club through the last three seasons.

His name was hardly the most widely circulated in recent days, yet the choice did not come out of nowhere. It rests on a clear technical vision, one that goes well beyond simply finding a new coach before the season kicks off.

Plenty of factors pushed Al-Ahli towards this decision. Let us break the deal down from an analytical angle, with a proper reading of the scene from inside the Al-Ahli household.

AFP
Timing difficulty
Al-Ahli couldn't afford to hang around after Jaissle's departure. With the new season fast approaching, time became a major factor in deciding the identity of the new coach.
Read also: An out-of-the-box replacement: Al-Ahli of Saudi Arabia sign Bosic in a surprise move!
Landing a top-tier coach from Europe was never going to be easy. Most of the big names were tied to contracts with their clubs, or preferred to launch a new project from pre-season rather than a few days before the competitions kicked off.
Heavyweight coaches also attach plenty of conditions before agreeing to any project. Chief among them: a say in transfers, the selection of the technical staff and the pre-season programme. Al-Ahli simply didn't have the luxury of granting any of that right now. That is why Bosic emerged as the coach most ready to take on the task immediately.

A style close to the Jaissle school
Al-Ahli signed Bosic for one main reason: his technical philosophy mirrors the approach the team has grown used to in recent years.
The Dutch coach favours attacking football, high pressing and tactical flexibility, with a heavy emphasis on possession and quick transitions. Those same elements shaped Al-Ahli's identity under Matthias Jaissle, and they carried the team to major successes at both domestic and continental level.
That is why the club's management believe the players won't need a radical change in style. The new coaching staff will instead be tasked with developing the ideas already in place rather than tearing them up and starting from scratch. That approach could hand the team greater technical stability at the start of the season.
AFP
The real bet begins inside the pitch
Bosic arrives with a strong coaching record, but his success at Al-Ahly won't be judged on what he achieved elsewhere. It will be measured by what he delivers with "Al-Raqi" in the coming period.
His biggest challenge? Leading a team built to compete for titles. The squad boasts a group of stars whom the fans expect to keep collecting trophies, and that raises the ceiling of expectations from day one.
The real test remains on the pitch. Names alone don't make success, and no coach carries a magic wand. However great his experience, he needs time, support and stability to impose his character and turn his ideas into results. That will decide whether Bosic's appointment was a well-considered step or a gamble forced by circumstances.