ABU DHABI // Khamis Esmail has said the UAE need to target a victory in next week’s crucial qualifier against Saudi Arabia if they are to fulfill their dreams of reaching the 2018 World Cup.
The Emirates go into the potentially pivotal encounter in Jeddah siting third in Group B after Thursday night's 3-1 win against Thailand at the Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium. The result means Mahdi Ali's side have six points from their opening three matches in the third and final qualifying stage for Russia 2018.
Saudi, meanwhile, are one point and one place better off following Thursday's 2-2 home draw with group leaders Australia. The top two teams are guaranteed a place at the World Cup, while the third-placed side then enter a series of play-offs for a chance to book a spot at the global finals.
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Tuesday’s meeting at the King Abdullah Sports City could therefore prove decisive. The UAE have never defeated Saudi in a competitive fixture in their country, with their last victory against their regional rivals coming at the 2007 Gulf Cup, which was played in the Emirates. The two met most recently in the previous round of qualification, with the UAE losing 2-1 in Jeddah last October before holding Saudi to a 1-1 draw in Abu Dhabi in March.
However, midfielder Esmail is confident his side can return with the three points on Tuesday to give the UAE a huge boost in their attempts to make only a second World Cup. Their only appearance was in 1990.
“We want to go to the World Cup and every player who wants to be there has to believe in himself,” Esmail said. “We do believe in ourselves and hopefully we will go there and win.
“Saudi are a very strong team, especially in these World Cup qualifiers, but we have to win against them and we will work together to win. With our players, our coach, our family, we believe we can win in Saudi. We took three points [against Thailand]. Now we have to go to Saudi and do that.”
Mahdi Ali made a number of changes to his starting line-up against Thailand, with Tariq Ahmed excelling after replacing Amer Abdulrahman in midfield. The Al Nasr midfielder is hoping he did enough to warrant another start next week, although he is under no illusions as to the size of the tasking awaiting the UAE.
“It will be a very difficult match,” Ahmed said. “You know it’s a Gulf derby between the UAE and Saudi. No one can predict the result. It will be more difficult than Thailand.”
Asked if the UAE had underestimated a Thailand team who came close to a shock result on Thursday, Ahmed said: “We were not surprised by how good they were. We were expecting a lot of difficulties in this match. There is some fault in our own team, such as in defence, but the important thing was the three points.”
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