(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Emirati coach Ebrahim affirms team is braced up for forthcoming Asian Games in Incheon.
UAE and South Korean players duel for ball possession during a warm-up match ahead of the Asian Games in Incheon South Korea on Wednesday. — Supplied photo
Dubai — UAE Olympic national team suffered a narrow 1-2 defeat at the hands of hosts South Korea in the final test ahead of the 17th Asian Games in Incheon South Korea on Wednesday.
Jim Ming put the Koreans ahead in the 27th minute and Sultan Bargash levelled for the UAE a minute after the break. Towards the 74th minute Kim came with a strong run to make it 2-1 for the home team.
The UAE head coach Ali Ebrahim downplayed the defeat saying that it was a useful test for them.
“We will work on the weak points and make good the mistakes that have been committed by the players. The boys fought back very strongly after they went down 0-1 in the first half but they lost the result of the game in last 15 minutes.
“The players did well against the home team and I would like to thank them for their effort. There’s enough time to prepare for our opening clash against India on Monday. The defenders have showed good level of coherence and they were able to stop the Korean striker Kim and intercepted most of the passes which were sent to him by the playmakers.
“But the boys retreated to their defensive zone in the second half specially after the equaliser which has put the defensive line under strong pressure.
“I have carried out some replacements to redeploy the squad and we have successfully softened the Korean grip while the strikers have squandered too easy scoring opportunities.
“I think the overall performance will change in the competitive matches and the players will make good account of themselves after a long effort to fine tune the squad.
“I can safely say that we have achieved all our objectives from the training camp and the Korean test was of great use for our campaign” he said.
Meanwhile the Korean coach H. Chung said his players did nothing wrong and he’s quite satisfied with the overall performance of the team.
“It was a highly tactical game where there were no many scoring opportunities at both ends but my players were convincing and they have at least 90 percent ready for the Games.
“The UAE players have showed a high fighting spirit and the match will be of great help for them before facing KSA” he added.
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