UAE coach Mahdi Ali to explore his options for crunch Gulf Cup game

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  • Looking for the elusive goal: UAE's Amer Abdulrahman (r) intercepts Mohammed Al Seyabi of Oman in the Group B opener last Friday.

    Stadium: Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium

    Time: 18.45
    Live on beIN Sports 

    UAE coach Mahdi Ali has vowed to ring in the changes for tonight’s clash with Kuwait as he attempts to breathe life into the Whites’ Gulf Cup defence.

    The UAE endured a dull goalless draw in Friday’s Group B opener against Oman. A pedestrian display featured few real chances against opponents who came into the tournament in disarray after three defeats from five matches.

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    The drab performance extended a run in which the UAE have scored just once in their previous five officially-sanctioned friendlies, providing a stark contrast to the vibrant team that swept to success in the 2013 edition of the Gulf Cup.

    Striker Ali Mabkhout and defensive midfielder Khamis Esmail seem particularly vulnerable after being hooked in the previous match, with veteran forward Ismail Matar and dynamic midfielder Majed Hassan potential options to start at Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium tonight.

    “I think this game is very important for us, to keep our chances of qualifying for the final rounds and be a part of defending our title,” Ali said.

    “For the regular 11 players, there will be some changes that will suit the game against Kuwait. We hope the team will be ready for the coming match, thankfully there are no injuries to report.”

    Kuwait stunned 2013 finalists Iraq in their opener, winger Fahad El Enazi curling home the winner in the 92nd minute. This result has ramped up the pressure on the UAE if they are to avoid a repeat of the group-stage exit in the tournament that followed their only previous Gulf Cup triumph in 2007.

    Facing them is a team imbued by confidence, guided by a coach with inside knowledge of the Emirati players. Between 2010 and 2012, itinerate boss Jorvan Vieira had short spells in the Arabian Gulf League at Ittihad Kalba, Bani Yas and Sharjah. Despite respecting the Brazilian’s 34-year managerial career which has been almost exclusively spent in the Middle East, Ali insisted his innate understanding of the region would compensate.

    He said: “I think there is nothing secret between the Gulf Cup teams. Everybody knows everybody. “We know the Kuwaiti team, and they know us very well. Maybe, captain Vieira has good experience in this region.

    “[But] We are born in this region, and this is our home. We know how things go in this region. “It gives us an advantage about how to deal with such a competition and opponents. We know he has good experience, but we know our team and our opponents.”

    The UAE’s indifferent recent form has opened up a section they appeared set to dominate in the Saudi capital. Kuwait look poised to take advantage of this slip up, although boss Vieira insisted “things can change in a second” on the pitch.

    “Teams sometimes have ups and downs,” the 61-year-old said.

    “That a team doesn’t score is not the most important, it is the quality of the players they possess. Both teams need to win, we need to win to gain more security and tranquillity – we proved we are tough versus Iraq.”

    Iraq vs Oman

    Iraq are in good shape to get over the “shock” of losing their Gulf Cup opener, according to coach Hakeem Shaker.

    The Lions of Mesopotamia were tipped as dark horses for Khaleej 22 after taking winners UAE to extra-time in the previous edition’s decider.

    Their side is rapidly develop­ing, boasting exciting young tal­ents such as Al Dhafra loanee Humam Tariq and rapid left-back Ali Adnan. This pedigree failed to show in Friday’s late Group B defeat against Kuwait, Columbus Crew forward Justin Meram the only player to impress on his interna­tional debut.

    Boss Shaker, who cut a com­manding figure in his pre-match press conference in Riyadh, was sure his troops would get the result they need tonight against Oman.

    He said: “We have to work hard and forget what happened to us in the previous game.

    “We must overcome difficult cir­cumstances in order to return Iraq to the competitive part of the group. The Kuwait match was a shock, we were just around the corner from the win.

    Oman began their campaign with a surprise goalless draw against the UAE in which they restricted the holders to few chances and saw a Qasim Hardan header softly ruled out for a push.

    Red Warriors coach Paul Le Guen insisted he had not worked out “a special plan” to leave the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium with another positive result.

    He said: “The win of Kuwait against Iraq was about details and the qualification too will depend on that. We will have to be very pre­cise, very well organised and not make silly mistakes.

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