UAE vs Australia

Ahmad bin Ali Stadium in Doha plays host to a single-leg World Cup play-off showdown between the United Arab Emirates and Australia.

Seeking their first appearance at the World Cup finals since ‘Italy 1990,’ the United Arab Emirates have got as closest as possible to reach the most prominent football showpiece in two decades. Having qualified for the AFC play-offs for the first time since 2001, the UAE will hope to build on a narrow 1-0 win over Australia in their most recent meeting. However, they have lost both previous H2Hs in the World Cup qualifying campaigns without scoring. That ties in with the UAE’s scoring woes that have seen them go scoreless in back-to-back internationals before netting precisely once in the last two. New manager Rodolfo Arruabarrena will be out to stage another upset after beating South Korea 1-0 to advance to this round.

On the other hand, determined to qualify for their fifth successive World Cup finals, Australia head into proceedings amid a rotten competitive form. Before defeating Jordan 2-1 in a friendly last time out, the ‘Socceroos’ had gone winless in three consecutive World Cup qualifiers (D1, L2), drawing a blank in both defeats. Unfortunately for head coach Graham Arnold, his men have not fared well outside their homeland of late, as witnessed by an underwhelming run of four winless outings on foreign soil (D2, L2). But since they’ve already developed an intimate familiarity with the uncomfortable conditions presented by Doha’s climate, Australia will be up for the fight.