Russia 2018 Asian Qualifiers Third Round: UAE 3-1 Thailand

The two-time Gulf Cup champions bounced back from the disappointment of their 1-0 loss against Australia last month to pick up their second win of the campaign following their opening day win against four-time Asian champions Japan.

Mabkhout claimed a goal in each half as the UAE collected all three points against a Thailand side that scored their first goal of the campaign when Tana Chanabut netted in the 65th minute before Ahmed Khalil put the result beyond doubt in injury time.

Tana’s goal was not enough to spark a full scale come back for Kiatisuk Senamuang’s side, who have now lost three games in a row despite several encouraging displays by the South East Asian champions.

“The result went in our favour but the players made things harder on themselves, especially in the first half when they missed several scoring chances and more goals would have made things easier for us in the second period,” said Ali.

“After scoring the second goal, our performance dropped and the players relaxed. However, Thailand’s goal affected us negatively and we had to make some changes in order to put more strength in the attack and stop the threat of our opponents.”

The Thais threatened as early as the 11th minute when Krirkrit Thaweekam’s low cross from the left skidded across the penalty area, only for Mongkol Tossakai to narrowly miss making a connection, and that early scare shook the UAE into life.