UAE’s Asian Cup practice match with Kuwait cancelled

Football Association rejects opponents’ request to film warm-up at Gold Coast, writes Amith Passela.

The Kuwait game was the last opportunity for Mahdi Ali, the UAE coach, to test his players before their Asian Cup campaign. Courtesy Al Ittihad

The UAE’s preparations for the Asian Cup were disrupted on Saturday when their final friendly in Australia before the tournament begins next week was cancelled following a disagreement with scheduled opponents Kuwait over whether the game could be filmed or not.

The game at the Cbus Super Stadium on Queensland’s Gold Coast, east of Brisbane, was called off just minutes before it was to have kicked off, with the UAE Football Association claiming in a statement on Saturday night that it had rejected a request by the opponents to film the game, which was to have been played with no members of the public or media allowed to attend.

The UAE FA said: “The Kuwaiti football delegation has failed to honour an agreement, under which an official letter was sent to the Kuwaiti Football Association on December 15, stressing that the match would not be recorded and broadcast and the spectators and media would not be allowed inside the stadium.

“However, the Kuwaiti delegation insisted on recording the game, which did not fit with the UAE coaching staff’s goals.”

The UAE squad had arrived in Australia last week to gain some match practice ahead of the start of the Asian Cup and had defeated Jordan 1-0 in their first scheduled friendly on Tuesday, thanks to a late goal from Haboush Saleh.

The Kuwait game was the last opportunity for UAE coach Mahdi Ali to run the rule over his squad before they begin their campaign at the Asian Cup next Sunday with their opening Group C game against Qatar in Canberra.

Discussions between the two countries had gone on so long that the players from the two sides were in the tunnel ready to walk out on the pitch before negotiations broke down for good, according to the UAE FA.

“The issue could have been settled especially as the Kuwaiti team had handed over the roster to the Australian referees, and the two teams lined up in the corridor, ready to enter the pitch, but the Kuwaiti team manager escalated the issue and threatened to cancel the game if their demand was not met,” the UAE FA statement said.

“The UAE team rejected Kuwait’s request because it did not tally with the UAE officials’ goals and this led the match to be called off, with the Kuwaiti team preferring to hold a training session at the stadium scheduled to host the friendly.”

The postponement will be a disappointment to the UAE as Mohammed Obaid Hammad Al Dhaheri, the general supervisor of the UAE team, had last week emphasised the importance of the two friendlies to the side’s preparations.

“The two encounters are highly important to the coaching staff that will try to put into practice the ideas that they have worked on in the last few days, and make sure the players are prepared physically and technically ahead of the finals,” he had said.

The Asian Cup begins on Friday, with Kuwait, who are in Group A, playing in the opening game of the tournament against hosts Australia.

Follow our sports coverage on Twitter @SprtNationalUAE