It's time for UAE to pick up the pieces and start afresh

The UAE's Fares Juma (third right) in consoled by his teammates after exiting from the AFC Asian Cup 2019 at the Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.

Walid Abbas shed buckets of tears with midfielder Ali Salmin trying to console the Shabab Al Ahli defender. Playmaker Mohammed Abdulrahman stood motionless, staring at the dark sky. Winger Bandar Al Ahbabi was on his haunches. Fares Juma, the towering Al Ain centre back, who was handed the captain's armband at the start of the game, buried his face into his right hand as a substitute and a member of the support staff put their arms around his broad shoulders. A despondent Alberto Zaccheroni went across to Juma and patted his back.
Thousands in the stands had the look of disbelief, while some wept and wept. 
These were the heart-wrenching scenes at the Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi after the UAE's dream of winning the continental showpiece - the AFC Asian Cup - on home soil, came to an abrupt end in the semifinal.
But, perhaps the most striking and the most enduring image was that of talisman Ismail Matar. The UAE's most famous footballing son walked off the pitch, tears gushing from his eyes, the pain in his heart visible for all to see.
Although he's still got a little bit of his old magic in his legs, but at 35, this was perhaps the beginning of the end for Matar.
Ever since he broke onto the scene and set the field ablaze by outshining none other than Spanish wizard Andres Iniesta to win the Golden Ball at the Under-20 World Cup in 2003 (then called the World Youth Championships), the AFC Asian Cup represented one last shot at glory following the disappointments of not qualifying for the World Cup.
True, his CV is sprinkled with Gulf Cup triumphs in 2007 and 2013 and a runners-up finish two years ago, but the AFC Asian Cup was built up to be the fitting farewell for Matar on home soil.
Alas, it was not to be though and the pain will rankle for quite some time.
And not just for Matar but also for the likes of rock-solid centre back Ismail Ahmed and a few others, who at the wrong side of 30, are nearing the twilight of their careers.
The benefit of hindsight is one can finally see clearly, wiping off the blur, of what could have been. But the flipside is it will be consigned to just ifs and buts as one cannot rewrite history. But maybe, one can learn from the experience of it all. 
Not taking anything away from outgoing coach Alberto Zaccheroni and the current squad, preparations for Asia's biggest competition could've begun maybe much earlier than it eventually did.
Zaccheroni, who plotted Japan's road to the title in 2011, would've had more time with the players and a bigger pool of players, so to speak.
But then, for no fault of his own, the Italian was jettisoned into the seat following Emirati Mahdi Ali's departure following the World Cup debacle and the mini experiment that was Edgardo Bauza. 
Zaccheroni, the former AC Milan, Lazio, Inter Milan and Juventus coach only took over in October 2017 and went about outlining the roadmap in May last year, with exactly 238 days to go. 
A series of five camps across Europe and at home began in August but it didn't help that domestic competitions as well as mounting injuries, none much bigger than magical playmaker Omar Abdulrahman's, were the obstacles the 65-year-old encountered.
Considering the circumstances, it was a decent showing by Zaccheroni, with the UAE warming up before making the business end of the tournament. His remit was to land the title and he fell one step short.
With his contract too coming to an end with the UAE's campaign, the cycle has ended. It is now time to start afresh and now.
The UAE FA should waste no time in finding a successor with the focus on qualification for the 2022 World Cup. Croatian Zlatko Dalic, who oversaw his country's dream run to the World Cup final, has been mooted as a possible candidate. Formerly with Al Ain, he would be a good fit, if the FA can prise him out from Croatia.
But whoever it may be, the UAE will have to pick up the pieces and start the process now because time is of the essence.
james@khaleejtimes.com