UAE attack toothless in tame draw with Jordan

UAE 0 // Jordan 0

Juma Rabee, the UAE coach, still hopes his team can make it to the quarter-finals of the Asian Under 19 Championship despite yesterday's scoreless draw with Jordan at the Zibo Sports Centre Stadium in China.

"It was a very difficult game as the two teams wanted to win after losing the first game but a draw is good for both teams because it means we both still have a chance to qualify," Rabee said on the AFC website.

"The chance is still there for us," he added. "We both have one more game and a win will mean qualifying."

Japan's 4-0 victory over Vietnam earlier may have brightened Rabee's hopes as his team face the Vietnamese tomorrow.

The UAE lost 2-1 to Japan after a bizarre goalkeeping blunder by Ahmed Mohammed in added time. Yesterday against Jordan they were disappointing in attack.

"In the first game, I accept we made mistakes in defence," Rabee said.

"We did well in attack but the chances did not come. This game, while there were some mistakes in defence, we had a lot of chances but could not finish."

Mohamed Abdeladhim, Jordan's coach, was satisfied with the result even though it means his side will need to beat Japan, one of the standout sides in the tournament, in their final game after their 2-1 loss to Vietnam.

"We played well today and fought well," Abdeladhim said.

"It was a big difference from our last game [against Vietnam] but the draw means we need to win the next game against Japan.

"Though it will not be easy we will do our best in the upcoming match to get the three points."

* Compiled by Amith Passela