Abu Dhabi: The UAE start their 2015 Asian Cup qualifying campaign at 3pm on Wednesday when they face Vietnam in Hanoi in their Group E opener.
And while they are in buoyant mood following their Gulf Cup success in Bahrain last month, the fixture will also evoke mixed feelings.
Firstly, Mahdi Ali’s men have rightly been called a “dream team” following their unstinting success in recent years in competitions such as the Asian Youth Championship, the Asian Games, the Fifa World Youth Cup, the London Olympic Games and the Gulf Cup.
But the Vietnamese capital, the venue for Wednesday’s match, has also been the scene of a bitter disappointment for the UAE.
After winning the Gulf Cup in 2007 for the first time, they lost 2-0 to Vietnam in the opening match of the group stages of the Asian Cup.
But a few months later, the UAE returned to Hanoi, in the 2010 World Cup qualifiers, and defeated the home team with a single goal from defender Bashir Saeed, before trouncing Vietnam 5-0 at Mohammad Bin Zayed Stadium in the return leg.
In 2013, though, the UAE are totally different from the team that lost in 2007. The members of the present team have been together for about seven years and have complete mutual understanding and also trust in the technical staff. Coach Mahdi Ali has led them since their days as a youth team in 2008, when they won the Asian Youth Championship in Saudi Arabia.
And, as they proved in Bahrain last month, they are well capable of triumphing on foreign fields.
“We have a good chance of continuing to win matches,” a confident Ali said. “This group of players have the winning mentality needed to create a formidable squad that achieves victories.”
Ali is expected to start the match with Ali Kashif in goal, his defensive options are; Abdul Aziz Haikal, Hamdan Al Kamali, Mohannad Al Enazy, Mohammad Ahmad, Abdul Aziz Sangoor and Abdullah Moussa. In midfield Ali must choose from; Amer Abdul Rahman, Khamis Esmail, Omar Abdul Rahman, Habib Fardan or Esmail Al Hammadi and his attack will consist of; Ali Mabkhoot, Saeed Al Kathiri, Ahmad Khalil or Esmail Matar.
Much will obviously depend on what strategy he uses in the game and whether injury doubts Mohammad Ahmad, Khamis Esmail, Ali Mabkhoot and Abdul Aziz Sangoor can recover in time.
The other match in the group on Wednesday will be held in Tashkent, where Uzbekistan will host Hong Kong.
