UAE captain Saeed Al Kathiri believes the team’s desire to capture Asian Games gold has been reinforced after they booked themselves a spot in the quarter-finals with a 3-1 victory over Vietnam at the Hwaseong Sports Complex Main Stadium.
Al Kathiri, who was part of the UAE squad that won silver in Guangzhou four years ago, scored his fourth goal of the Games to put the Whites in front early on before Saif Al Meqbaali doubled their lead in the second half.
But Vietnam were thrown a lifeline when UAE midfielder Mohammed Al Yassi received his marching orders for inexplicably headbutting a player in response to a rough challenge on a teammate.
It meant the 2010 runners-up were forced to play with 10 men for half an hour and Vietnam tried to capitalise by making it 2-1 in the 87th minute, through Huy Hung Nguyen.
But the UAE defence held firm as their opponents searched for the equaliser and when Bandar Al Ahbabi rounded the goalkeeper and slotted home in the dying stages, he killed off the game booking his side a quarter-final meeting with North Korea.
"We’re feeling great and we won’t just stop here, we’ll keep on going to get the gold," said Al Kathiri, who is one of three over-age players in the squad.
"We have huge ambition to win and every time you advance and take a step further, your dream gets bigger. We’re all thinking about the cup and now we have to prepare well for North Korea."
The North Koreans secured their place in the final eight by routing Indonesia 4-1 at the Ansan Wa Stadium. They are undefeated so far in the Games and could prove the UAE’s toughest test yet.
"We haven’t had the chance to watch them yet but we’ll study their matches with our coach (Ali Ibrahim) and get prepared," added Al Kathiri. "We don’t think they’ll be better adjusted to the conditions because we’ve been here for almost a month and are well-acclimatised to the conditions.
"We’re not too worried about them. The most important thing is to focus on ourselves."
Other action saw Iraq advance to the last eight by downing Tajikistan 4-2 while Saudi Arabia edged past Uzbekistan thanks to a 95th minute strike from Abdulaziz Al Bishi.
The quarter-finals will take place tomorrow at 14:00 (9:00 UAE time) and 17:00 (12:00 UAE time).
Schedule – Quarter-finals (UAE time)
9:00 Thailand v Jordan – Incheon Football Stadium
9:00 UAE v North Korea – Hwaseong Sports Complex Main Stadium
12:00 South Korea v Japan – Munhak Stadium
12:00 Saudi Arabia v Iraq – Goyang Stadium
