The UAE, who have already secured a spot in the semi-finals of the Under 17 Gulf Cup, will take on Oman on Tuesday night with a chance of finishing at the top of their group. "Obviously we will have no pressure when we play Oman, but that doesn't mean we are not going for a win," said Ali Ibrahim, the coach. The team booked their passage into the semi-finals with a 2-0 victory over Bahrain late on Sunday night at the Aspire Academy in Doha, Qatar. Khalid Khalfan gave the UAE the lead in the second minute, and then rounded off the win with his second goal on the stroke of full time to send Bahrain crashing out championship. "We wanted to win this game and qualify for the second round straight away. I am glad we managed to achieve that goal instead of keeping it late," Khalfan said. The UAE face Oman tonight in a match to decide the team that tops Group B. Oman beat Bahrain 3-0 earlier in the tournament. Qatar take on Kuwait in Group A. "The first game was always hard," Ibrahim said. "Bahrain could have been in the game had they scored from the spot kick to level the scores. That was the turning point for them. "My players were a bit nervous at the beginning and the early goal and a missed penalty from Bahrain gave us the advantage. It was a win or bust game for Bahrain and they came all out at us." Overall, he said, he was happy with the team's effort. "I can't be more pleased with my players. They held their nerves to win this game," he said. "Now it doesn't matter whom we meet in the semi-finals. In my opinion, all four teams are equal in strength." Follow <strong>The National Sport </strong> on & Amith Pasella on
