'UAE not intimidated by Saudis'

Abu Dhabi: Striker Faisal Khalil says the UAE team are determined not to be intimidated by Saudi Arabia's reputation when the two meet in the second semifinal of the 18th Gulf Cup tomorrow.

Saudi Arabia are a nine-time winner of the regional tournament while the UAE are yet to lay their hands on the trophy.

"We are not worried about the glorious history of the Saudi team and its achievements," Khalil said yesterday. "We have a lot of respect for them, but we are determined to win and reach the final.

"Our team is progressing well from one match to another. We played our best match so far against Kuwait, but we still have a lot more to show."

The UAE squad held a training session on Wednesday night as the reserves team played a friendly match against Al Wahda. They won 4-1.

Mohammad Surour and Saeed Al Kass scored twice each for the national team, while Al Enazy scored for Al Wahda.

The UAE coach Bruno Metsu allowed Haider Allo Ali, Mohammad Surour and Al Kass to play the the entire 90 minutes in order to condition them for the semifinals.

Allo Ali revealed that he had fully recovered from the injury that had kept him on the bench for the past three matches.

"I am ready if the coach wants me to play," he said. "But I have complete confidence in my colleagues and I am sure that each one of us can do a good job for our country. It is not important who plays but the most important thing is that the UAE wins the match."

Libero Basheer Saeed says he regrets the mistake he committed that resulted in Kuwait scoring a goal in Tuesday's big game.

"Football is about mistakes but that does not mean I am not sorry for the mistake I committed," he said. "I will compensate for it against Saudi Arabia. It is a promise."

Saeed scored a spectacular goal against Yemen in an earlier match.

Midfielder Salem Khamis stressed the team's determination to win their semifinals.

"We cannot afford to lose to the Saudis because we will be eliminated from the competition. We want to win the title and that means we have to win both our remaining matches. And I believe that we are capable of achieving that."