UAE senior team gearing up to take on Kuwait in friendly

Abu Dhabi: The UAE's senior soccer team are continuing preparations at their external training camp in Dubai before leaving to Kuwait tomorrow to face the country's team in a friendly match on Wednesday.

The UAE, guided by Strecko Katanec, will face Kuwait in a match to mark the retirement of Kuwait's former international player Ali Abdul Redha.

The UAE are preparing for their match on January 6 against Malaysia in the qualifiers for the 2011 Asian Cup.

Victory in the match, to be held at the Maktoum Stadium in Dubai, will secure a place in the finals of the continental championship to take on Uzbekistan who lead the group by nine points from three matches after having beaten Malaysia twice and the UAE once in Sharjah earlier this year.

Promotion

The UAE have emerged winners after beating Malaysia 5-0 in Kuala Lumpur in the first leg. The two top teams from the group will win promotion to the finals.

The team's chances of winning the match against Malaysia were enhanced with the return of Esmail Mattar, the country's ace striker, following a long injury spell that kept him out of action for about two months before returning last month to his club, Al Wahda.