DOHA // The Qatar boss Jorge Fossati has warned his side against complacency when they host Bahrain in their second World Cup qualifier at Al Sadd Stadium today.
A 3-0 victory over Uzbekistan on Saturday got their Group One campaign off to an ideal start in Doha. Bahrain, by contrast, suffered a 3-2 home defeat to Japan.
However, Fossati was guarding against complacency ahead of the clash with their Gulf neighbours. "We should not celebrate our win against Uzbekistan too much because we still have a long way to go," the Uruguayan said.
"Despite the 3-2 defeat against Japan, we must not underestimate Bahrain because they will be looking for a win. Each match we play is separate from the others and our match against Bahrain has become the most important match for us."
The midfield pair of Hussain Yasser and Wessam Rizik are back in the fold after missing the victory over Uzbekistan through suspension but Talal Al Bloushi is sidelined after picking up his second yellow card of the competition last time out.
Bahrain will be without the defender Mohamed Hussain after he was sent off in the second-half against Japan and Faouzi Aaish is also ruled out after collecting a second booking against the East Asians.
Meanwhile, the Australia coach Pim Verbeek will not alter his gameplan for today's World Cup qualifier in Uzbekistan despite the hosts' desperation to bounce back from Saturday's defeat at the hands of Qatar. The Australians go into the game in confident mood after a 2-1 win in a friendly against Holland at the weekend.
* Agencies
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Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
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Usain Bolt's World Championships record
2007 Osaka
200m Silver
4x100m relay Silver
2009 Berlin
100m Gold
200m Gold
4x100m relay Gold
2011 Daegu
100m Disqualified in final for false start
200m Gold
4x100m relay Gold
2013 Moscow
100m Gold
200m Gold
4x100m relay Gold
2015 Beijing
100m Gold
200m Gold
4x100m relay Gold
Will the pound fall to parity with the dollar?
The idea of pound parity now seems less far-fetched as the risk grows that Britain may split away from the European Union without a deal.
Rupert Harrison, a fund manager at BlackRock, sees the risk of it falling to trade level with the dollar on a no-deal Brexit. The view echoes Morgan Stanley’s recent forecast that the currency can plunge toward $1 (Dh3.67) on such an outcome. That isn’t the majority view yet – a Bloomberg survey this month estimated the pound will slide to $1.10 should the UK exit the bloc without an agreement.
New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly said that Britain will leave the EU on the October 31 deadline with or without an agreement, fuelling concern the nation is headed for a disorderly departure and fanning pessimism toward the pound. Sterling has fallen more than 7 per cent in the past three months, the worst performance among major developed-market currencies.
“The pound is at a much lower level now but I still think a no-deal exit would lead to significant volatility and we could be testing parity on a really bad outcome,” said Mr Harrison, who manages more than $10 billion in assets at BlackRock. “We will see this game of chicken continue through August and that’s likely negative for sterling,” he said about the deadlocked Brexit talks.
The pound fell 0.8 per cent to $1.2033 on Friday, its weakest closing level since the 1980s, after a report on the second quarter showed the UK economy shrank for the first time in six years. The data means it is likely the Bank of England will cut interest rates, according to Mizuho Bank.
The BOE said in November that the currency could fall even below $1 in an analysis on possible worst-case Brexit scenarios. Options-based calculations showed around a 6.4 per cent chance of pound-dollar parity in the next one year, markedly higher than 0.2 per cent in early March when prospects of a no-deal outcome were seemingly off the table.
Bloomberg
