Marino Pusic has matched the start Matthias Jaissle made at Al-Ahli, guiding the Saudi and Asian champions to a 1-0 win over New Zealand's Auckland FC on Wednesday evening in their first match of the 2026 Intercontinental Cup for clubs.
The Dutchman has won all four games since taking charge, mirroring Jaissle's opening run back in 2023-2024.
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Saudi newspaper "Arriyadiyah" reports that Jaissle, now in charge of Newcastle United, started his own Al-Ahli reign with four straight wins before losing the fifth.
That run brought the AFC Champions League Elite title and the Saudi Super Cup. It began with a 3-1 win over Al-Hazm, followed by another 3-1 over Al-Khaleej, then a single-goal victory over Al-Akhdoud and a 2-0 win over Al-Tai. In his fifth match, the German watched his side collapse to a 5-1 defeat against Al-Fateh.
Jaissle resigned before the current season and joined Newcastle United, which prompted Al-Ahli to hand Pusic a two-season contract.
Since arriving, the Dutchman has beaten Al-Diriyah 1-0 in the opening rounds of the Saudi Roshn League, Al-Anwar 2-1 in the King's Cup round of 32, and Abha 4-0 in the second round of the league. The 1-0 win over Auckland FC came in the qualifying tie for the Africa, Asia and Pacific Cup fixture within the Intercontinental Cup for clubs.
Al-Ahli travel to face hosts Al-Khaleej next Saturday in the fourth round of the Roshn League.
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