UAE superstar Omar Abdulrahman has flown to Spain for treatment on a knee injury and will not feature in his nation’s upcoming friendy double-header despite being named in Mahdi Ali’s 24-man squad.
Abdulrahman, 23, sat out Sunday night’s Al Clasico because of the persistent problem.
The playmaker first picked it up in the dying monents of Al Ain’s 4-0 Arabian Gulf League victory at Ajman a fortnight ago, exacerbating the issue during last Tuesday’s AFC Champions League semi-final decider against Al Hilal.
Speaking after the 4-3 Abu Dhabi derby loss to Al Jazira, coach Zlatko Dalic urged the Whites not to select the playmaker as “if he rests he will be ready for both the national team and for Al Ain”.
UAE looked to have not heeded those words when he was called up for Friday’s meeting with Australia and Tuesday’s clash with Uzbekistan, both at Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium.
A letter has now been sent to the UAE Football Association detailing Abdulrahman’s trip to see a specialist in Barcelona. The player will be under observation for four to five days, with a planned return pencilled in for the next round of AGL matches on October 17 when Al Dhafra travel to the Garden City.
“Omar travelled with his brother Khaled to Barcelona this morning [Monday],” Al Ain team supervisor Mohammed Obeid Hammad said. “He will undergo treatment and an assessment by a specialist there, and we will talk to them again in a few days about the problem. We expect Omar will be ready to play again in seven to 10 days.
“We have sent a letter to the UAE FA explaining the situation, and they understand perfectly.”
Meanwhile, Hamdan Al Kamali has returned to the international fold after proving his fitness with table toppers Al Wahda.
The defender was unavailable for the summer tour to Europe, but should line-up alongside Ismail Ahmed in the coming days.
Versatile midfielder Mohamed Abdulrahman, a sibling of Omar, has also been rewarded for his stellar early-season form.
The players will train for the first time at 18:00 on Tuesday at Zayed Sports City. The fixtures provide a final run out before the Gulf Cup-opener against Oman on November 14.
UAE squad to face Australia and Uzbekistan:
Ali Khaseif, Khamis Esmail, Ali Mabkhout (Al Jazira), Khaled Essa, Mohamad Ahmed, Mohannad Salem, Ismail Ahmed, Mohammed Fawzi, Omar Abdulrahman, Mohamad Abdulrahman, Rashed Essa (Al Ain), Hamdan Al Kamali (Al Wahda), Amer Abdulrahman, Haboush Saleh, Ahmed Ali (Bani Yas), Abdulaziz Haikal, Abdulaziz Sanqour, Walid Abbas, Ismail Al Hammadi, Ahmed Khalil, Habib Fardan (Al Ahli), Tariq Ahmed (Al Nasr), Mohamed Yousif (Sharjah), Saeed Al Kathiri (Al Wasl).
