Khalid Al Hashemi
Doha, Qatar: Past encounters against central Asian teams will help the United Arab Emirates find solutions against their AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 last 16 opponents Tajikistan, according to defender Khalid Al Hashemi.
In the 14 months leading up to the tournament, the UAE played friendly matches against Central Asian sides Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. They also faced Kazakhstan.
“It is an important match in the Round of 16, no team reaches this stage if they were an easy team to face,” said Al Hashemi.
“Most of our friendly matches were similar teams, so we know their style and we know what to expect. We know they can be physical and tough to challenge. The friendlies help us a lot in preparing for how to play and how to get the win on the pitch."
Back in 2019, the Whites faced another debutant side from central Asia in the Round of 16; the clash against Kyrgyz Republic at Zayed Sports City proved to be a hard-fought battle, with the Emiratis needing an extra-time goal from an Ahmed Khalil penalty to win it after the 90 minutes ended 2-2. The UAE went on to reach the semi-finals.
With Tajikistan the next opponents at Ahmad bin Ali Stadium today, Al Hashemi drew parallels with the previous tournament which he watched as a supporter, with his international debut only arriving three years later.
In Qatar 2023, just like they did under Alberto Zaccheroni in 2019, the UAE have come under criticism the microscope from local media for what has been described as less than convincing performances.
“In these tournaments, it is always about winning and qualifying, rather than performance. You could play the best game in your history and still not win, so it will not matter. You can play a game that doesn’t look great but you get that important result. For us, what matters the most is to win."
