Dubai: Former UAE striker Mohammad Omar is happy doing what he is doing. A well-established trading company and a bit of dabble in the booming real estate sector is enough to keep Omar occupied on most days.
But it is his first love that he misses most. “It hurts to even come and watch a football match. That is how much I miss football,” Omar told Gulf News on the sidelines of the Sixth Shaikh Maktoum Football Championship that is being held at the Dubai Police Officers Club.
At first more famous for being one of the younger brothers of temperamental UAE striker Zuhair Bakhit, Mohammad Omar has a footballing career spanning more than two decades. He represented the national team on 102 occasions, scoring 28 goals. He was the captain of the UAE team from 2002 to 2008, and at club level he served at several clubs including Al Ain, Al Jazira, Al Dhafra, Al Nasr, Ajman Club and the club from where his career took off, Al Wasl. For some time, he even served as CEO for Mumbai Tigers FC in India.
He has managed to settle in doing normal things, but he still misses the competitive edge of playing football at the highest level. “I need to be practical as well. There is a time for every thing and I suppose it was time for me to step away from football. But I try my best to keep in touch with football by participating in such tournaments,” Omar said while choosing to play for the Sport 4 All team in the Shaikh Maktoum tournament.
“I turn 40 in November and I have had a wonderful career. On most days I am happy doing what I am doing. But it is playing football that I do best and I hope we can win the tournament here this year,” he hoped.
