Mahdi Ali will be looking to put the final touches to his plan for the 2015 Asian Cup qualifier against Hong Kong when the UAE meet Malaysia in a friendly match in Shenzen, China, today.
The UAE – unbeaten in 16 games – are top of their qualifying Group E with two wins from two games, both by the same 2-1 scoreline, over Vietnam and Uzbekistan.
Their next challenge is Hong Kong on October 15 and a victory against the hosts at the 40,000-seater Hong Kong Stadium in Wanchai could virtually confirm their place for the Asian Cup finals in Australia.
The UAE have been camping in China since September 29, preparing for the Hong Kong and were a comfortable 2-0 winners over Laos in their first friendly on Saturday, with Salem Saleh and Ali Mabkhout on target.
Malaysia, however, should provide a stiffer challenge for the UAE as they will also be using this game to finalise their strategies for their Group D match at home against Bahrain on October 15. That, and the Malaysian team’s similarities with Hong Kong, is the reason why UAE picked them as their opponent ahead of next Tuesday’s game.
Malaysia are currently third in their qualifying group with three points, bouncing back with a 2-1 win over Yemen after losing 2-0 in Qatar. Bahrain are top of that group with six points from two games.
“We have been camping here for 10 days now and I believe we have achieved our objectives,” said Mutrif Al Shamsi, the UAE team manager.
“The conditions here in Shenzen are very similar to the one we will face in Hong Kong, so the players are used to this weather and time difference now.
“The players have also shown great maturity and commitment to their training routines, and you could see that in our last friendly against Laos. Of course, we did not play at the level that we normally do, but that is normal since there were many substitutions from both sides.
“Malaysia will be a completely different challenge because they are using this friendly to get ready for their match against Bahrain.”
Given their preparations, Al Shamsi is confident UAE will return home with three point from Hong Kong. “They are playing at home, so they will have that advantage,” he said. “But we have a lot of confidence in our players. We know the level they can play at and they are used to playing in front of big crowds.
“So I am confident we can get a positive result in Hong Kong and take a step closer towards qualifying for the finals in Australia.”
arizvi@thenational.ae
