Meet Marcelo Mendes, UAE Beach Soccer Coach

Dubai: The UAE has shown its pedigree in beach soccer in the past six years. Asian champions on two occasions in 2007 and 2008, the UAE qualified to a third Fifa Beach Soccer World Cup as hosts in 2009 and earlier this year for a fourth time after edging out Australia 3-2 in extra-time during the qualifiers held in Qatar in January.

Behind this success has been Marcelo Mendes. By his own admission, Mendes has never played beach soccer in his life, and yet, he is widely regarded as one of the best in the business.

Now 43, Mendes began his coaching career in 1997 going on to overlook the success with national teams of Portugal, Thailand, Uruguay, South Africa and Turkey before finally making the UAE his home in 2007. Though the UAE has failed to advance past the group stages at the previous three World Cups, his biggest achievement was a shock 2-1 win over multiple world champions Brazil during the 2009 Fifa Beach Soccer World Cup.

This time, the UAE has been put in Group A along with Spain, USA and hosts Tahiti when the 2013 Fifa Beach Soccer World Cup kicks off in Papeete, the capital of French Polynesia. After three attempts, Mendes believes this is the UAE’s chance of showing their true potential on the world stage:

Gulf News: A fourth World Cup appearance for the UAE and things seem to be looking great for you. What sort of challenges lie ahead?

Marcelo Mendes: First, we cannot afford to relax at any moment. We have qualified for a fourth time to the Fifa Beach Soccer World Cup and that only means that we are good enough to be representing Asia. Now we need to continue with the hard work and ensure we get the desired results. I believe this year will be our chance to show our true potential to the world.

Q. How have the preparations been so far, considering that the weather has not been too kind either?

A. We are training six times a week, except on Fridays. Last week, we had a friendly competition along with Belarus, Oman and two teams from the UAE. The ‘A’ team lost to Belarus 3-1 and the ‘B’ team went down 4-3. There’s nothing to be concerned about here as Belarus was in the later stages of preparing for the European League being played in Italy and we were without a couple of our main players. Against Oman we did well with the ‘A’ team winning 5-2 and the ‘B’ side winning 3-2. I am happy with the exposure the players have got playing against such opponents as we are still in the early stages of our preparations. Everything is going as per expectations.

Q. What’s it going to be like for the squad in the next few days?

A. We are now trying to consolidate on our fitness levels. The next few days will be crucial and we will need to improve tremendously before we leave for Belarus on July 1. In Belarus we will be part of a six-nation tournament involving Ukraine, Holland, Iran, Turkey, Belarus and the UAE. This is going to be a very strong competition and I would expect our team to start winning matches here.

Q. What sort of goals do you set for your team?

A. Our main objective is the World Cup in Tahiti. The players understand that we have the opportunity this time. It’s all in our hands now. Our next step is the tournament in Belarus, and I am certainly not expecting to win this one. But we need to play against the best and do well. This will be a huge evaluation for the team. Next we have the AFC Cup in Hayiang, China from July 12-14 followed by another four-nation tournament in Budapest, Hungary from August 15-21. By this time our team should only be concentrating on winning each and every match.

Q. What has been the biggest hindrance for beach soccer here?

A. If I were to be honest I would say that beach soccer has not received the recognition it deserves. This team has done a lot for the country. Appearing in four World Cups along with two Asian titles is quite an achievement for any team. But what have they got in return? I think these players need to be recognised for raising the UAE flag. We are eternally grateful to the Dubai Sports Council for backing us all the way, but I would still expect the UAE Football Association and other clubs to join in and assist in the improvement of the system. We need more clubs to join in the league and competitions organised by the DSC if we are to spread the sport further.

Q. So when you speak about more support is it that you are looking at more funding?

A. No, please don’t get me wrong. We need more involvement from the authorities. This time the UAE FA has got involved and that is good, not just for the team but for beach soccer as well. It’s necessary that the UAE FA recognise what is being done. The money is important in motivating but sometimes it is also important to have the morale up.

Q. What would be ideal conditions for the sport in the UAE?

A. We need to improve on two counts: have beach soccer grounds in other places like Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah and also shift our base in Al Mamzar to a more open area where we can get enhanced engagement from supporters and fans coming and attending matches and training sessions.

Q. How have you been successful as a coach?

A. I think the first thing is that we have had to adapt to each other and at the same time work like a two-way street. I can’t ask this team to play like Brazil, but I can certainly ask them to be flexible. I tell them stuff and I listen to them as well. It’s a continuous exchange between coach and players and this according to me is why we have been successful.

Fact File

Name: Marcelo Mendes

Date of Birth: January 23, 1970 in Rio de Janeiro

Coached: Portugal, Thailand, Uruguay and Turkey

Since 2007: Coach of UAE

Achievements:

Asian Champions in 2007 and 2008

Qualified for Fifa Beach Soccer World Cup in 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2013

Won Asian Beach Games in 2010 in Muscat

Stood third at Samsung InterContinental Beach Soccer Cup in 2012