Ahmed believes UAE teammates will give it all

UAE centre-back Ismail Ahmed believes that his teammates will fight until the last minute to keep the country's slim hopes alive for qualifying for the World Cup in Russia.

The Whites' World Cup dream were resuscitated after a shock 2-1 win over Middle East heavyweights Saudi Arabia at home last week. Although there are various permutations and combinations at play with their chances not just hinging on their last fixture against Iraq in Amman Jordan on Tuesday, but also on the other encounters between Australia versus Thailand and Saudi Arabia versus Japan, the Al Ain defender said that the UAE will give it their all.

"The fighting spirit and the strong desire to achieve a good result was what stood out in our match against Saudi Arabia. I have full confidence in my teammates and I'm sure they will achieve a positive result in our final game against Iraq," said Ahmed.

Ahmed is yet to recover from an injury and has been ruled out for the clash against Iraq. Star playmaker Omar Abdulrahman too will miss the game after earlier being ruled out for the match against Saudi Arabia. The current AFC Player of the Year is tending to his injured ankle in Barcelona.

The UAE are also without Al Jazira frontman Ali Ahmed Mabkhout, midfielder Khamis Ismail and left-back Mahmoud Khamis, with all three suspended. Al Ain's Khaled Abdulrahman, Al Jazira's Ahmed Al Attas and Al Wahda's Mohammed Abdulbasit have been called up to the squad as reinforcements.

Despite the odds being stacked against them, Ahmed felt that the reinforcements will stand up and rise to the occasion.

"I believe that my teammates will fight until the last minute. There are many challenges ahead of us and even if the odds are not favourable, the players know the importance of such games," Ahmed said.

"I would have hoped to have been fit and ready for the match against Iraq and continue the qualifying campaign with my teammates, but unforunately, I haven't fully recovered from the injury. But I believe that the players will fight for the pride of the UAE and come up with a positive result," he added.

The squad left for Amman on Sunday afternoon. They will take on Iraq at the Amman International Stadium at 6 p.m UAE time.

The UAE are fourth in Group B with 13 points from nine matches. They have won four, draw one and lost four. Japan, who top the group, have already qualified for Russia. It is now a three-way battle between Saudi Arabia, Australia and the UAE for the second automatic spot and third slot for the play-offs.

Source: Khaleej Times