Abu Dhabi: The UAE senior team started their training camp here on Monday in the build-up towards their last match in the Asian qualifiers for the 2014 World Cup against Lebanon, who they will face at the Al Nahyan Stadium on February 29.
The players gathered at the Intercontinental Hotel and trained at the Armed Forces stadium without the players of Al Wahda, who will join the squad on Tuesday after playing against Al Kiraitiat from Qatar in the GCC Clubs Championship on Monday night.
The UAE are bottom of the group which also features South Korea and Kuwait and qualification is beyond them, while Lebanon are placed second behind Korea with 10 points. A win for the visitors would lead them to the final stage of the qualifiers for the first time ever.
The UAE will face Palestine in a friendly match at the Al Nahyan Stadium on Friday.
"This team is not only for the two matches, but also for the future." head coach Dr. Abdulla Misfir told Gulf News. "We have already selected them in the match we played earlier this month against Uzbekistan and the players have proven their worth by beating the Uzbeks with a single goal. It is the UAE's first victory in a long time."
Misfir has invited: Ali Khaseef, Juma Abdulla, Abdulla Moussa, Khalid Sabeel, Abdulla Qasim and Subait Khater from Al Jazira; Dawood Sulaiman, Faris Juma, Muhannad Al Enazy, Ali Al Waheebi, Abdul Aziz Fayez and Mohammad Nasir from Al Ain; Salem Abdullla, Adil Abdulla, Eissa Obaid and Waleed Abbass from Al Shabab; Eissa Ahmad, Yagoob Al Housani, Mohammad Al Shehhi and Esmail Matar from Al Wahda; Basheer Saeed and Majed Hassan from Al Ahli; Yousuf Jaber and Adnan Hussain from Bani Yas; and Younus Ahmad from Al Nasr.
