Dubai: UAE national football team coach Mahdi Ali hopes to introduce some new talent when the Whites play a friendly against Myanmar on August 28.
Ali insisted young players will be given a chance to impress in that match as the Whites prepare for the resumption of their 2018 Fifa World Cup qualifying campaign against Malaysia on September 3 and Palestine on September 8.
The UAE laboured to a 1-0 win against a gutsy Timor-Leste side in their first match on the long road to Russia in June, so Ali is keen to have a look at some fresh faces against Myanmar.
“My philosophy has always been to take some new players to bring in fresh blood for the sake of the team. For the next two matches I will have some new faces. I had done the same thing when we travelled to Malaysia [in June] as I wanted these new players to see what the squad does on and off the field,” he told Gulf News on the sidelines of the UAE Orphans Sports Day at Dubai Sports World last week.
“In addition, it gives the youngsters time to blend with the more experienced members so that we have one solid unit representing the country.
“Basically, it works both ways. Bringing in youngsters means I get the opportunity of watching them at close quarters and it also gives the young players a chance to blend in with the squad.
“When I call someone into the squad, it is not just because he is capable of playing football, but also because he can contribute to the squad through other aspects such as personality, temperament, behaviour and his ability to play under pressure.”
Of the struggle against Timor-Leste, Ali added: “We started the game in an abnormal situation because our players had come fatigued. It was the end of the season and they had played too many games.
“When we travelled to Malaysia, there was a time difference and they had to adapt quickly. Besides, the condition of the field was not all that good.
“So just training is not enough to keep the level of players up for international games. You need to play at least once a week to maintain their pace and physical condition. Against Timor it was not a normal situation, so we are happy we managed the three points.
“Our idea is to have the national squad together after the first round of the Arabian Gulf League. The Super Cup is on August 15 followed by the first round of AGL. We will gather without the Al Ahli players [who have an Asian Champions League assignment] on August 23 and start preparing for the friendly against Myanmar.”
