UAE desperate for full points against Jordan
Defending champions UAE will be desperate to gain full points against Jordan on Wednesday to keep alive their chances of reaching the quarter-finals of the AFC Under-19 Championship after suffering a 2-1 setback in their opening Group C encounter against Japan.
In fact both teams will be looking for three points at Zibo Sports Centre Stadium in Japan with Jordan also suffering a similar reversal in their match against Vietnam.
UAE assistant coach Alnemer Abdelmajeed is wary of the opposition because they are an unknown quantity but said they were ready for the challenge.
“We do not know a lot about Jordan,” he admitted.
“We will need to watch them and then we can decide what tactics are necessary to beat them.”
He was philosophical of their loss to Japan which was largely caused by defensive bungling.
An Adnan Rashid own goal gifted Japan the lead while goalkeeper Ahmad Mohammad spilled a harmless cross which was pounced upon by Hiroshi Ibusuki to seal victory in added time after Ahmed Khalil had got the equaliser just minutes earlier.
“Mistakes happen in any game. It is football,” he said.
“Yes they made mistakes but it happens.”
Jordan coach Mohamed Abdeladhim blamed his side for relaxing after taking the lead late in the first half through Mahmoud Za’tara.
Vietnam punished them for their complacency by scoring twice in the second half through Le Quoc Phuong and Nguyen Van Thanh.
“We did not play well against Vietnam and did not fight so we lost,” he said warning his players to lift their game.
“We have two more games and we must get three points. It will be difficult for us but I have the hope that we can achieve this.
“All the teams here in Zibo still have a chance, so we will prepare with this in mind and do the best we can in our upcoming two matches.”
North Korea and Saudi Arabia also kept alive their chances of a booking a berth in the last eight on Tuesday. Korea beat Iraq 3-0 in a Group B match while Saudi Arabia overcame Thailand 1-0.
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