ABU DHABI // The finish line to a four-year journey is in sight, Mahdi Ali said, and he urged his players to seize their chance today and for UAE fans to be their witnesses.
The country’s Under 23 football team play Australia at 5.30pm at Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium in the second-last group match in qualifying for the London 2012 Olympics.
Two victories will gain them a place in the Summer Games for the first time and would rank behind only the 1990 World Cup appearance as the biggest achievement in UAE football history.
Ali began coaching these players in 2008, when they won the Under 19 Asian Cup in Dammam. He said the London 2012 Olympics were a distant goal, back then, one that only now has come into focus.
“We have a great chance to make this happen for the first time in the history of the UAE,” he said. “I think this is a big, big, big, big thing for the fans, the officials, the coaches, the players and staff, and I think we have to fight for this hope.
“Chances don’t come all the time. Sometimes you have only one chance, and you must fight to get it.”
The UAE cannot clinch a London berth today, nor can they be eliminated from contention; the decisive match will be in Uzbekistan on March 14. But the team certainly can ease their path to London by defeating Australia, who have their own slim chance still of advancing.
“All the players are ready,” said Mohammed Ahmed, the team captain. “We have played for many championships, and we think we are 100 per cent ready.”
Goals likely will come dear: the UAE have one in four matches; Australia have none. The UAE are on eight points from four matches: two scoreless draws, including one at Adelaide in September; a victory over Iraq 17 days ago, and a forfeit victory over Iraq from November, when the visitors used an ineligible player and a 2-0 UAE defeat became, two weeks ago, a 3-0 UAE victory.
Mahdi Ali">The line-up that won in Doha thanks to Ahmed Ali's goal could see several changes. A trio of players who typically have been in first XI did not play in the 1-0 victory but are now available: the Lyon defender Hamdan Al Kamali, the Al Ahli striker Ahmed Khalil and the Al Ain midfielder Omar Abdulrahman.
Amer Abdulrahman, the Baniyas midfielder and orchestrator of the UAE attack, injured his foot in a match with the Chinese club Dalian last week and his availability will not be known until just before the match, Ali said.
He said Australia are a formidable opponent. “They are a big team, and we’ve played against them many times, going back to the Asian Cup semi-finals in Dammam in 2008. The Australia team is in good shape, and they play rugby-style football.”
Ali said his strategy will not be impacted by the result of the match between Uzbekistan and Iraq last night, won 2-1 by Iraq.
come to support the team">He called on UAE fans to turn out in force for the match despite its early starting time. The stadium holds more than 45,000; it can seem nearly empty even with 10,000 inside.
“Anyone who loves his country will come no matter the time,” Ali said.
“We played against Iraq, and the Iraqi fans were more than the UAE fans. Whoever likes his country will need no invitation.”
poberjuerge@thenational.ae
Is it worth it? We put cheesecake frap to the test.
The verdict from the nutritionists is damning. But does a cheesecake frappuccino taste good enough to merit the indulgence?
My advice is to only go there if you have unusually sweet tooth. I like my puddings, but this was a bit much even for me. The first hit is a winner, but it's downhill, slowly, from there. Each sip is a little less satisfying than the last, and maybe it was just all that sugar, but it isn't long before the rush is replaced by a creeping remorse. And half of the thing is still left.
The caramel version is far superior to the blueberry, too. If someone put a full caramel cheesecake through a liquidiser and scooped out the contents, it would probably taste something like this. Blueberry, on the other hand, has more of an artificial taste. It's like someone has tried to invent this drink in a lab, and while early results were promising, they're still in the testing phase. It isn't terrible, but something isn't quite right either.
So if you want an experience, go for a small, and opt for the caramel. But if you want a cheesecake, it's probably more satisfying, and not quite as unhealthy, to just order the real thing.
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START-UPS IN BATCH 4 OF SANABIL 500'S ACCELERATOR PROGRAMME
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The five stages of early child’s play
From Dubai-based clinical psychologist Daniella Salazar:
1. Solitary Play: This is where Infants and toddlers start to play on their own without seeming to notice the people around them. This is the beginning of play.
2. Onlooker play: This occurs where the toddler enjoys watching other people play. There doesn’t necessarily need to be any effort to begin play. They are learning how to imitate behaviours from others. This type of play may also appear in children who are more shy and introverted.
3. Parallel Play: This generally starts when children begin playing side-by-side without any interaction. Even though they aren’t physically interacting they are paying attention to each other. This is the beginning of the desire to be with other children.
4. Associative Play: At around age four or five, children become more interested in each other than in toys and begin to interact more. In this stage children start asking questions and talking about the different activities they are engaging in. They realise they have similar goals in play such as building a tower or playing with cars.
5. Social Play: In this stage children are starting to socialise more. They begin to share ideas and follow certain rules in a game. They slowly learn the definition of teamwork. They get to engage in basic social skills and interests begin to lead social interactions.
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Company: Idealz
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