Asia's four other representatives at the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia will, however, be in action.

Japan, the only Asian team to advance to the knockout stage in Russia 2018, will play Chile in Hokkaido on Friday in Hajime Moriyasu's first match in charge of the four-time AFC Asian Cup winners.

Korea Republic, with Paulo Bento at the helm for his first match, face Costa Rica on Friday.

Bento will get a second chance to gauge his squad, which includes eight players who won the 2018 Asian Games Indonesia gold medal on Saturday, against Chile on Tuesday.

Korea Republic failed to advance to the knockout stage of the FIFA World Cup but stunned 2014 champions Germany 2-0 in their final group match in Russia.

Saudi Arabia, who recovered from their 5-0 defeat to Russia in their FIFA World Cup opener, to end their campaign on a high after defeating Egypt 2-1, will play Bolivia at the King Fahd Stadium on Friday.

Islamic Republic of Iran, who came agonisingly close to a knockout stage appearance at Russia 2018, will face fellow UAE 2019 qualifiers Uzbekistan at the Bunyodkor Stadium on Tuesday.

The United Arab Emirates, who are hoping to go one better than their runners-up finish the last time the AFC Asian Cup was held on home soil in 1996, face Trinidad & Tobago on Thursday.

That will be followed by Alberto Zaccheroni's team playing Laos.

Teams who did not qualify for UAE 2019 will also be in action as they prepare for various regional championships that will be held later in 2018.

The SAFF Championship kicked off on Tuesday with seven teams competing while the AFF and EAFF qualifiers are also ongoing during the international break.

Friendlies

Thursday
UAE v Trinidad & Tobago
Uzbekistan v Syria
Kyrgyz Republic v Palestine
Jordan v Lebanon
Bahrain v Philippines

Friday
Korea Republic v Costa Rica
Japan v Chile
Qatar v China PR
Singapore v Mauritius
Chinese Taipei v Malaysia
Saudi Arabia v Bolivia

Photos: FIFA via Getty Images