Today's Edition
Kuumar Shyam (Abu Dhabi)
When the UAE set off in the third stage of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers last month, manager Paulo Bento stressed the importance of having experience in his side while also identifying Iran and Qatar as favourites to secure the two automatic berths from their Group A.
Past the midway stage in the home-and-away round, the UAE take on Qatar in a return home game at Al Wahda’s Al Nahyan Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday night. The UAE beat Qatar 3-1 in their campaign opener but found their second win only five days ago to occupy third spot in the group behind Iran and Uzbekistan.
Bento’s side are ahead of Qatar on goal difference and must prepare for a backlash in the mid-table clash. The third and fourth-placed teams will advance to a play-off where another two berths will be at stake. “I have mentioned at the outset that Iran and Qatar are favourites while we must strive to get as much points as we can and take it match by match,” Bento said on Monday.
“Then at the end, we can look at the table where we finish. There is also more than one way of reaching the World Cup, but we focus on this match now.
“Qatar are more experienced than us, having won two Asian Cups, and in their coach [Marquez Lopez] have someone who knows the country and the players very well. They also hosted the World Cup and have seen it first hand. They can play in many ways, but we have studied them and will try to prepare for their regular dynamics.”
Central to his preparations and keeping the experience quotient in mind, Bento included three players with experience of playing in foreign leagues at the start of the campaign. Yet, only the Dubai-bred Mackenzie Hunt has featured in the past two matches – as substitute against Uzbekistan and a little over a half-game against Kyrgyz Republic. Hunt is a midfielder who has been called up from England, where he was playing for Fleetwood Town.
“Just because they have been included does not mean we have to play them or can get ahead of others who have given so much time and years spent with the UAE team. They have roles to play and we will use them as per our needs and requirements,” Bento said after a morale-boosting 3-0 victory against Kyrgyz Republic in Abu Dhabi on Thursday.
However, Bento is also, understandably, not looking much into the confidence factor from their rallying victory in Doha last.
Qatar also conceded a 2-0 lead against Uzbekistan before a last-gap strike from Lucas Mendes saved them the blushes.
“It is important to not think about what happened at the start of the group,” said Lopez in Abu Dhabi when asked if he was concerned about the team’s defence. “Yes, we conceded the lead against Uzbekistan with the goals coming on the counter-attack, but tomorrow is a new game.”
UAE have won five out of eight meetings in the past with Qatar and Al Nahyan Stadium may provide a comforting home feeling, but Bento’s team will still have to be razor sharp as both teams talked about finding goals while preserving leads.
Key to the UAE in such situations will be players such as Khaled Al Dhanhani, the Sharjah right back, who can get into scoring positions at times. The player said the “team is aware of the expectations from such a crucial game and will do their best to make the fans and the public happy”.
From the opposite camp, dangerman Akram Afif broke into a near smirk and smiled when asked if Qatar can exact revenge on the night. “This is what us players, certainly what I live for. When there is pressure, we would like to perform and prove ourselves best we can,” the Al Sadd winger said.
