There may have been no goals and little entertainment at the Mohammed bin Zayed stadium on Friday night, but that did not prevent Mahdi Ali from being encouraged by what he saw in the UAE's scoreless draw against Australia in an international friendly.
The UAE coach was looking at his side’s preparations for their Gulf Cup defence next month, and a competitive, if uninspiring, encounter against a side who were one of the 32 sides at the World Cup finals in the summer in Brazil gave him cause for optimism.
“It was a good game, especially against Australia as they are coming after a good World Cup campaign,” he said. “They are in the process of building a team for the Asian Cup under a new coach.”
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