UAE stun Brazil in beach soccer

Dubai: Possibilities always exist, but no one, not even Marcelo Mendes, the UAE coach, would have expected his side to beat beach soccer world champions Brazil in their own backyard.

But Mendes's men have achieved the impossible and Saturday's 2-1 victory over the world's top side will go down as one of his squad's greatest achievements till date.

The Emiratis realised the dream as the two sides locked horns in a friendly during the UAE's two-week-long training camp in Rio de Janeiro.

Mendes's men had the opportunity to compete against some of Brazil's top beach soccer sides, including Vasco da Gama and Botafogo as they lined up at the Buzios Beach Soccer Tournament.

For Mendes, who is eyeing a top-four finish at the 2009 Fifa Beach Soccer World Cup, which will be hosted along the Jumeirah beach strip between November 16 and 22, the result is incredibly heartening and it puts the Emiratis in good stead ahead of the tournament in four months' time.

The Emiratis were expected to return to Dubai on Sunday for a short break before heading to Portugal to take part in the unofficial World Youth Championship - Mondialito - which will involve some of the world's top international beach soccer sides.

The UAE is hot on making beach soccer the next big sport here, with a league planned just after November's World Cup.