"We are not allowed to make mistakes"
The UAE is rated highest in Group G, ranked 73rd in the world, 80 places ahead of Malaysia. However, in the first leg of the qualifying round at the end of 2019, the West Asian team lost 2 matches against Vietnam and Thailand. That made coach Bert van Marwijk " fly away". After that, the team replaced 2 other foreign coaches but before they could lead the team, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and Bert van Marwijk returned at the end of 2020.
"The UAE team cannot afford to make mistakes in the remaining 4 matches, with the goal of winning all 12 points, to win a ticket to the next round," coach Bert van Marwijk conveyed the message to his students. The Dutch strategist himself is also very confident in the opportunities of the UAE team: "The UAE team still has a chance to continue, we have played 1 match less than our opponents, as long as we win against Malaysia, the team will overcome our opponents".
Compared to the first leg, the UAE team is considered much stronger, thanks to good organization, especially the addition of 3 naturalized players including Sebastian Tagliabue, Caio Canedo and Fabio Lima. In the last 2 friendly matches, they beat India 6-0 and beat Jordan 5-1.
The UAE players are well aware of their difficult tasks ahead. Although they are rated higher than Malaysia and have many advantages, the home team is not subjective. Defender Youssef Jaber shared with Al Bayan:
"We are confident in our ability but will take every match very seriously. The match against Malaysia is the key and the first match is always important. Malaysia is also a team that is making progress."
According to statistics in the last 6 matches, the UAE team won against Malaysia. The last time they visited the UAE in September 2015 in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers, Malaysia lost 0-10, the biggest defeat in history. And the UAE is truly a "dream" for the Malaysian team.
Malaysia believes in naturalized players
Malaysia admits that winning against the UAE host is a "dream". To do that, the Southeast Asian team ignored mixed reactions from public opinion, to continue giving the opportunity to a newly naturalized player Dion Cools, who has two bloodlines: Belgium and Malaysia.
The defender who played in the Champions League and Europa League joined the Malaysian national team on June 1 and only had 2 days of training with his teammates, before playing against the UAE. Coach Tan Cheng Hoe said he will arrange for Dion Cools to pair up as a central defender with captain Aidil Zafual.
The central defender position of the Malaysian team is a concern when Shahrul Saad is injured, while his replacement Irfan Zakaria made a mistake in the match against Bahrain.
Dion Cools is expected to play an important role in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers. In addition, they have 3 other naturalized players without Malaysian bloodline including Sumareh, Krasniqi and De Paula. These players have more or less demonstrated their abilities and could be the "key" to Malaysia's playing style.
In the first leg, Malaysia lost 1-2 to the UAE at home despite leading from the first minute. This time meeting, the Malaysian team only hopes for points, but with their current strength, it is difficult for them to complete the goal against the UAE.
