Ali Ahmed Mabkhout of the UAE celebrates his goal against Bahrain. — AFP

Dubai — UAE face Iran in the final round of the AFC Asian Cup Group-C at the Brisbane Stadium on Monday. The match is set to kickoff at 1pm UAE time.

UAE and Iran adjust teams for Asian Cup Group decider Brisbane - Iran have made four changes for Monday’s decisive Asian Cup group match UAE with coach Carlos Queiroz opting for fresher, younger legs. With both teams already assured of a place in the quarter-finals, the pressure is off although the result will decide who finishes top and runner-up of Group C. Whoever wins will top the standings and play the runner-up of Group D but if the match ends in a draw, UAE will go through as the group winner because they have a better goal difference.  The United Arab Emirates took a more conservative approach, making just two changes. Defender Mohanad Salem replaced Hamdan Al Kamali and Habib Al Fardan moved into the midfield for Mohamed Abdulrahman. “It is a very important match and we will try to show our quality. All teams want a positive result,” UAE coach Mahdi Ali said. “Iran are a very good team and are ranked number one in Asia. It will be a tough game.” Carlos Queiroz  indicated his intentions by calling up three attackers into his starting lineup — Soroush Rafiei, Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Vahid Amiry as well as Khosro Heidari, and giving some of his more experienced players a rest. Ehsan Hajisafi, Masoud Shojaei, Vouria Ghafouri and Ashkan Dejagah were all relegated to the bench for the match at Brisbane’s Lang Park on a hot and humid evening. “It’s important to take into consideration the players, they aren’t accustomed to playing such intensive games every four days,” Quieroz said. “But there is no doubt we all play to win, because winning is the best medicine in football. There is no other medicine as good as winning a game. “I trust all 23 players. You can’t play in this competition with just 10 players. We want to win the game, but we don’t need to take risks.”-  Reuters

Confident UAE head coach Mahdi Ali reiterated that they are not scared by Japan should they be destined to take on the defending champions in the knockout stage of the competition.

“Bring on Japan” in the AFC Asian Cup quarterfinals, Ali said in a pre-match news conference on Sunday. UAE are ahead of Iran on goal difference, and a draw will pit Ali’s men against the runners-up of Group D, which defending champions Japan have the best chance of winning.

In the event UAE lose to Iran, they could very well get Javier Aguirre’s side in the last eight but Ali is perfectly comfortable facing any team.

“It doesn’t matter which team we have to play,” Ali said. “It’s good to finish first because it gives motivation to the players for the second round.

“We have no problem with Japan. We are used to the big atmosphere and our players have played in front of 60,000 against (DPR Korea), 75,000 at Old Trafford and 80,000 at Wembley during the Olympics.

“Every game against different teams you have different tactics. But we still remember we have our own identity. We will make minor changes to play the Iran team.”

UAE have not historically fared well against Iran. In 15 full internationals, the Emiratis have beaten the Iranians just once with three draws. Ali, though, dismissed any advantage Iran might have based on match-ups from the past.

“You cannot compare the past,” he said. “The level of this team is different and so is the Iran team. I do not think about it. We cannot predict the future but we try to make a positive result.

“We have more to give in coming matches. I hope people who watch our games get excited.”

Current Iran coach Carlos Queiroz managed UAE from 1998 to 1999 but Ali also ruled out any edge the Iranians may have from the Portuguese’s time in the Emirates.

“We live in a very small world,” Ali said. “You can watch every game and every player. All the information is clear and available.

“It’s not like the old days. It’s a very important match and we will try to show our quality. All teams want a positive result. Iran is a very good team and have the number one ranking in Asia. It will be a tough game.”

Lineups:

Iran - Alireza Haghighi; Jalal Hosseini, Mehrdad Pooladi, Khoso Heidari, Morteza Pouraliganji; Javad Nekounam, Vahid Amiry, Soroush Rafiei, Andranik Teymourian, Alireza Jahanbakhsh; Sardar Azmoun.

UAE - Majed Naser; Walid Abbas, Ali Ahmed Mabkhout, Mohamed Abdelaziz Sanqour, Mohanad Salem; Mohamed Ahmed Gharib, Amer Abdulrahman, Khamis Esmaeel, Habib Fardan, -Omar Abdulrahman; Ahmed Khalil.