UAE great sporting moments - No 2: UAE grace football's biggest tournament - the Fifa World Cup

Khalid Ismail ensured his name in Emirati lore by finding the net against eventual champions West Germany

The UAE team to face West Germany at Italia 90. From left: Faraj, Abdulrahman, I.M. Abdulrahman, Y.M. Mohammad, K.G. Mubarak, Abdullah, N.K. Mubarak, Abbas, K.I. Mubarak, Jumaa, and Adnan Al Talyani) pose for the official group picture at the Giuseppe Meazza stadium in Milan. The UAE lost to the eventual world champions 5-1. AFP

UAE fans mingle with supporters from Colombia during their opening match at the 1990 World Cup in Bologna, Italy, on June 9, 1990. Colombia won the match 2-0. Getty Images

A picture taken on June 19, 1990 shows Emirati forward Adnan Al Talyani controls the ball during the World Cup Group D match against Yugoslavia at the Renato Dall'Ara stadium in Bologna, Italy. Yugoslavia won 4-1. AFP

The UAE's Adnan Al Talyani challenges West Germany's Guido Buchwald. AFP Photo

UAE defenders surround West Germany striker Jurgen Klinsmann. Photo courtesy Al Ittihad

The UAE midfielder Khalid Mubarak, left, fights for the ball with the Colombian defender Andres Escobar during the 1990 World Cup in Italy.

The UAE's Khaleel Mubarak on the attack against Yugoslavia in the 1990 World Cup in Italy.

A handout still of "Lights of Rome", the documentary following the true underdog story of how the UAE national football team pulled off a miracle by qualifying for the 1990 World Cup in Italy. The Photo shows former UAE players Abdulrahman Al Haddad and Ali Thani at the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro where they were reunited with their former Coach Carlos Alberto Parreira. Courtesy Image Nation

The UAE have not qualified for the World Cup since 1990.

Abdulrahman Mohammed, left, challenges Colombia's Carlos Valderrama in their opening Group D game at the 1990 World Cup. The UAE lost 2-0 and were also defeated by Yugoslavia and West Germany. AFP

Every day over three weeks, The National looks back at the 21 greatest moments in UAE sports history.

On October 28, 1989, on sodden Singapore turf and less than 18 years after the formation of their homeland, the UAE realised one of football’s great dreams.

They qualified for a Fifa World Cup.

So very close in 1986, the national team hauled themselves over the line three years later, coming through a six-team final qualifying round when almost no one expected it. It was even suggested Mario Zagallo’s team had travelled simply to fulfil contractual obligations.

But the UAE beat the odds. After four draws and a late, late win against China, they entered the final match, against group leaders South Korea, sat second. Behind them, the Chinese, North Korea and Qatar gunned for their spot.

It didn’t begin well at the Jurong Stadium. South Korea scored after eight minutes, but the UAE regrouped to equalise in the 16th minute through sharpshooter Adnan Al Talyani. As they clung on for point, and not long before the conclusion, word filtered through from across the island-city state that Qatar had defeated China. The UAE had done it; they had reached the World Cup.

Watching the players celebrate in the mud, Emirati commentator Adnan Hamad was caught up in the emotion.

“I can see the lights of Rome from here,” he wept, his voice pumped into houses back home.

Speaking to The National in 2009, Abdulrahman Mohammed, the former UAE captain, said: "When the referee blew the whistle for the game to end, it was something I will never forget, something incredible. This, for me, was the best moment in the UAE's football history."

Goalkeeper Abdulqadir Hassan later added: “But it was not just for our team, it was for the whole UAE."

Hamad's now-famous words, meanwhile, make up the title to the excellent documentary, The Lights of Roma [Anwar Roma], which chronicles the UAE's remarkable journey to, and time at, Italia '90.

Not long before the tournament in Italy, former manager Carlos Alberto Parreira replaced compatriot Zagallo, a late change that threatened the team’s chances of making their mark on the global stage.

The draw wasn’t kind either. Placed in Group D, the UAE would face Colombia, West Germany and Yugoslavia.

Although they suffered three defeats, Parreira’s side exited with reputations enhanced. They coped admirably with a Colombia side boasting Carlos Valderrama and Freddy Rincon before losing 2-0.

In the 5-1 defeat to the Germans, Khalid Ismail ensured his name in Emirati lore by finding the net against the side who would go on to lift the trophy. Ali Thani matched the feat in the 4-1 reverse to a masterly Yugoslavia.

To this day, that UAE side, made up exclusively of locally based players, is revered and respected, held up as a shining example of the country’s ability to prosper against all circumstances.

Some years on, the golden group of 1990 exists still as the only UAE side to feature at a World Cup. Without doubt, it remains the country’s finest football achievement.