The UAE national team will begin their camp on May 15 for the resumption of World Cup qualification next month, with a friendly against Jordan planned as part of their preparations.
While the get-together starts in Dubai on that date, manager Bert van Marwijk will initially be without players from Shabab Al Ahli and Al Nasr, who contest the President’s Cup final on May 16, and Al Wahda, who have a rearranged Arabian Gulf League match to play against Fujairah following their recent Asian Champions League commitments.
The UAE are scheduled to face Jordan in the emirate on May 24, as preparations ramp up for the restart of the postponed qualifiers on June 3. The national team, currently fourth in Group G, meet Malaysia in the first of their four matches in 13 days. They then face Thailand, Indonesia and group leaders Vietnam.
All outstanding Group G fixtures will take place in Dubai after the Football Association won the right in March to serve as a centralised hub for the eight matches. Al Wasl's Zabeel Stadium and Nasr's Al Maktoum Stadium were chosen as host venues.
After Malaysia, the UAE play Thailand on June 7 and Indonesia four days later before rounding off the second round of qualification against Vietnam on June 15. Only the top team in each group are guaranteed to progress to the next stage, alongside the four best runners-up.
The UAE, who have only once before qualified for a World Cup, sit five points off Vietnam, although they do have a game in hand over each of their group opponents.
Van Marwijk, 68, is back in his second stint as manager following his reappointment in December, when he succeeded Colombian Jorge Luis Pinto. The Dutchman, who guided the Netherlands to the 2010 World Cup final and then masterminded Saudi Arabia's qualification for the 2018 finals, managed the UAE for nine months in 2019.
The ongoing coronavirus pandemic means Van Marwijk finds the national team in exactly the same position as when he left in December 2019. The UAE most recently played India in a friendly, on March 29, winning 6-0.
As reported last week, the FA is assessing the return of spectators for the World Cup qualifiers. The President's Cup final, staged at Al Ain's Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, will be open to fully vaccinated fans at 30 per cent capacity – the first time a professional football fixture has welcomed spectators since late February last year.
