UAE boss Mohammed Al Maazmi and his troops are brimming with confidence as they attempt to roar into the 2019 AFC Beach Soccer Championship’s quarter-finals with victory against Lebanon.
Both Middle East nations are through to the knockouts with a game to spare thanks to their 100-per-cent records against China and debutants Kyrgyzstan at Pattaya, Thailand. Added spice for Monday’s Group B-decider are memories of the epic semi-final in 2017’s previous edition, when a penalty shootout victory sent the Whites into that year’s Beach Soccer World Cup and ended their opponents’ dreams.
“I came for this tournament and in my mind, my plan is to go step by step, respect each team in the tournament,” explained Al Maazmi, who knows a top-three finish will earn a cherished sixth entry into this November’s global event.
“Inshallah, I will go to Paraguay without losing, and I will win the Asian title.”
Lebanon have racked up 16 goals in their two matches, including an 11-2 thrashing of Kyrgyzstan. This is four more than the UAE, who’ve conceded just three times to their imminent opponents’ five.
Their boss, Alex Braga, hoped this attacking flourish would provide added confidence.
“When the score was 7-1, we started to play all of the players, because that was an opportunity for the players,” said the Brazilian of the preceding dismantling of the Kyrgyzs.
“I’m happy because the team scored those goals and it’s good for everyone. It’s important.
“First we celebrated, because we guaranteed our six points. From (Sunday) we started our focus on UAE and see what we needed to do to prepare for the quarter-final.”
The UAE and Lebanon are guaranteed to meet the top two from Group A. This currently includes Palestine and Malaysia.
