Abu Dhabi: A ‘final mission’ of immensely challenging nature awaits the UAE on Tuesday as they bid to keep their 2018 Fifa World Cup qualification hopes alive, coach Mahdi Ali said on Thursday.
The UAE beat a plucky but limited Palestine 2-0 at the Mohammad Bin Zayed Stadium in their penultimate Asian zone Group A encounter in Abu Dhabi to stay on course to progress to the final qualification round as one of the four best pool runners-up.
While pleased with the vital victory, however, Ali lamented the fact that he will be without key men for Tuesday’s final group game against leaders Saudi Arabia, who hosted Malaysia later on Thursday evening.
Totemic striker Ali Mabkhout is struggling to be fit for the crunch clash after injuring his hamstring in action for his club side Al Jazira last week, causing the 33-goal man to miss Thursday’s match.
Ali will also be deprived of the services of midfielders Esmail Al Hammadi, who scored the first goal against Palestine, Majid Hassan and Habib Fardan, after they picked up a second booking of the campaign.
“This is a challenge,” Ali said. “Will I bring in other players? Yes, of course, I am thinking about it. But now is not the time to discuss it as we have to focus on Saudi Arabia, which is like a final mission, from tomorrow.”
The UAE may not have matched the pre-match passion and vigour of Ali, who implored his men to “play their hearts out” on Wednesday, but will cherish all three points.
Al Hammadi (32) and Ahmad Khalil’s (60) exquisite goals illuminated a wretched game, in which the Whites were strangely listless.
Bani Yas’ Ahmad Ali replaced Mabkhout up front alongside the 2015 AFC Asian player of the year Khalil, but the UAE badly missed their 33-goal talisman.
They were wasteful in possession and struggled for fluency against opponents who are ranked 117 in the Fifa world rankings, 53 places below them.
The noise and vibrancy of a boisterous home and away support at the Mohammad Bin Zayed Stadium – Palestine were roared on by several hundred travelling fans in a crowd of 15,822 – were in stark contrast to the somniferous fare on the pitch.
The game was brought to life with a moment of magic just past the half-hour, however, when Al Hammadi rifled in a close-range volley after a delightful interchange with Khalil.
The ubiquitous Al Ahli frontman then doubled the UAE’s advantage with an audacious ‘Panenka penalty’, although Palestine can feel rightly aggrieved after left-back Abdallah Jaber appeared to retract his hand from Mohammad Fawzi’s cross.
Palestine’s misery was compounded when Mohammad Darwish was shown a second yellow card for scything down Mohammad Abdul Rahman, while furious appeals for a penalty of their own for a perceived handball went in vain.
The gutsy visitors ended the game more impressively, though, provoking shrieks of delight from their away fans.
In the end, though, it was the massed home ranks who were celebrating.
