Tribune News Network
Doha
The Qatar national team will go into their crucial and final Group B match of the 25th Arabian Gulf Cup in Basra, Iraq, against United Arab Emirates at the Al Minaa Olympic Stadium on Friday aiming to clinch a semi-final place .
Two spots from the group will be decided after the final Group B games.
Three-time champions Qatar are currently second in the group behind Bahrain (3 pts) following their 2-0 win over Kuwait in their opening game before they lost to the defending champions Bahrain 2-1 in their second match.
UAE have lost their their opening two group matches but are still not out of contention for semi-finals berth.
Meanwhile Qatar’s Portuguese coach Bruno Miguel Pinheiro exuded confidence saying, “The team’s morale is high,” at the pre-match press conference on Thursday.
He, however termed the clash as both important and a difficult challenge.
“UAE are a good side and the results of their first two matches don’t reflect their quality. We have prepared well for the match and we will come up with a change in tactics,” said the Qatar coach.
Qatar led by a goal against Bahrain in their previous match before the title holders bounced back with goals in the second half including an 89th minute penalty strike from Abdulla Yusuf.
“We played well in the two matches including the match against Bahrain. The team will not lose confidence after losing just one match. Bahrain are strong side and we were a bit unlucky, and lost focus which we will have to avoid against the UAE. We will try to control the match against them,” said Pinheiro.Qatar midfielder Assim Madibo said defeat to Bahrain has not put extra pressure on the team.
“The defeat has given us motivation to bring improvement. We are aware of the value of three points and we will give our best against the UAE to claim three points,” the Al Duhail player stressed.
UAE coach Rodolfo Arruabarrena said the match was crucial for both the teams and wafrned his team of Qatar’s capabilities. “Qatar are a combination of young and experienced players and they depend on possession of the ball. They are capable of putting pressure on the opposition. I worked there and I know them well,” said Arruabarrena, who has coached Qatar’s Al Rayyan SC in the past.
The Argentine expressed his dissatisfaction on team’s performance in the first two matches. “We know that we have not lived up to expectations of our fans and no one is satisfied. We have worked hard to prepare for this important match. We are completely focused on the match against Qatar and then we will see the result of the other match,” he said.
UAE winger Yahya Al Ghassani said the team is only targeting a victory after losing the first two matches.
“We have to improve as we will not be satisfied until we take full points [against Qatar] and all players know their responsibility. We have to be focused in the match and we are capable of earning a win,” he said.
