UAE head coach Paulo Bento
Doha, Qatar: UAE head coach Paulo Bento has played down his side’s favourites tag by saying that they expect a tough second game against Arab Gulf Cup hosts Kuwait at the Jaber Al Ahmad International Stadium today.
Speaking ahead of the clash at the pre-match press conference yesterday, Bento said that “being called favourites doesn’t help our preparation”, with all to play for in Group A with all four teams sitting on a point.
“Being called favourites doesn’t help our preparation, at least I don’t think much on that,” said Bento. “I said previously that it is not important to be favourites or not in this competition as anything can happen.
“I don’t feel more pressure because of it. We make our normal preparation but I cannot control the expectation and opinions of other people.
“This is my first time as a coach in this competition which is a challenge, but on the other hand we as a technical staff already have experience in the World Cup, Euros and Asian Cup. It’s a challenge because it is the first time for us and we have short times between mUAE head coach Paulo Bentoatches to prepare the team,” Bento said.
The UAE, who drew their opener 1-1 with Qatar on Saturday, face Kuwait who were held to a 1-1 draw by Oman on the same evening.
“It is going to be a difficult game,” he said. “We are playing a team at home, which is always a difficult aspect to face due to many factors,” Bento added.
On the other hand, Kuwait head coach Juan Pizzi is confident that his side can upset tournament favourites UAE to boost their chances of reaching the semi-finals.
“I won’t be making any promises that we will win over the UAE, but we will be trying our best to seek it,” said Pizzi, at the pre-match press conference yesterday.
“Saturday showed just how much the crowd is behind us and we really appreciated the support. We have a squad of 26 players, including those who are injured, but I have an idea who will be participating in this match.”
Kuwait took the lead in their first match against Oman through Yousef Nasser’s header, but settled for a draw after Oman equalised before half-time.
