United Arab Emirates will be looking to maintain their 100% record in the World Cup qualifiers when they take on Yemen in the second of their Group H double-header at the Prince Saud bin Jalawi Stadium on Tuesday.
Noureddine Ould Ali's men have failed to win any of their last 18 games against the Whites since 1996 and will journey to the Prince Saud bin Jalawi Stadium looking to end this poor run.
Match preview
Yemen were denied a second consecutive victory in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers as they suffered a 2-1 defeat at the hands of United Arab Emirates when the sides met on Thursday.
In a one-sided affair at the Al Nahyan Stadium, Ali Saleh and teenage striker Sultan Adil scored on either side of Abdulla Idrees's 69th-minute own goal to hand the Whites all three points.
Having edged out Sri Lanka 4-1 on aggregate in the World Cup qualifying playoff, Ali's side suffered a 2-0 loss to Bahrain in the Group H opener on November 16.
However, the Al-Yaman bounced back five days later when they secured a 2-0 victory over Nepal at the Dashrath Rangasala courtesy of second-half goals from Omar Al Dahi and Mohammed Al Dahi.
With three points from a possible nine, Yemen, who are 151st in the latest FIFA World Rankings, sit third in Group H, only above rock-bottom Nepal, who have lost each of their three matches so far.
In stark contrast, United Arab Emirates currently lead that way at the top of the group standings, having picked up three wins in their opening three matches.
The Whites kicked off their qualifying campaign with an emphatic 4-0 victory over Nepal on November 16, five days before seeing for Bahrain at the Bahrain National Stadium thanks to goals from Abdallah Ramadan and Ali Mabkhout.
Prior to Thursday's victory over Yemen, United Arab Emirates endured a disappointing at the 2023 Asian Cup back in January, when they suffered a round-of-16 exit from the continental showpiece.
Paulo Bento's won just one of their three group-stage games to finish second in Group C, only above third-placed Palestine on goal difference, before losing on penalties to Tajikistan following a 1-1 draw in 120 minutes.
Team News
Following an injury-free outing against United Arab Emirates last time out, we expect Ali to name a similar squad on Thursday, with Ahmed Al Wajeeh, Hamzah Ghaleb, Harwan Alzubaidi and Al-Khader Al-Douh forming the back four shielding Abdullah Al-Sadi in goal.
Al Najma Manama striker Al Dahi will push for a place in the XI, teaming up with experienced forward Abdulwasea Al Matari, while Hamza Hanash and Anis Al-Maari should combine in midfield once again.
As for United Arab Emirates, Ahmed Abdulla Jamil was forced off injured midway through the first half last time out and the Shabab Al-Ahli defender is a major doubt for Tuesday's tie.
Should he fail to shake off the injury, 22-year-old Zayed Sultan could come into the fold, forming the back four with Khalid Hashemi, Khalifa Al-Hammadi and 22-year-old Bader Abaelaziz.
At the opposite end of the pitch, we expect Bento to name an unchanged front three of Yahya Alghassani, Saleh and 19-year-old Adil, while Majid Rashid and Abdulla Salmeen and Caio Canedo should retain their roles in the centre of the park.
Yemen possible starting lineup:
Al-Sadi; Al Wajeeh, Ghaleb, Alzubaidi, Al-Douh; Gahwashi, Hanash, Al-Maari, Mahrous; Al Matari, Maher
United Arab Emirates possible starting lineup:
Eisa; Sultan, Hashemi, Al-Hammadi, Abaelaziz; Rashid, Salmeen, Canedo; Alghassani, Saleh, Adil
We say: Yemen 0-2 United Arab Emirates
Yemen are in for another tough 90 minutes against United Arab Emirates, whom they have failed to get the better of in any of the previous 18 meetings between the two nations. Given the gulf in class and quality between the two sides, we are backing Bento's side to come away with all three points once again.
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