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Alhammadi stars as UAE edge Mauritania

Alhammadi stars as UAE edge Mauritania

The Peninsula

United Arab Emirates edged past a stubborn Mauritanian side 1-0 in a Group C match of the FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021, thanks to a stoppage time goal by substitute Khalil Alhammadi at Stadium 974, on Friday.

In what was the first ever meeting between the two sides, Bert Van Marwijk-coached UAE held an upper hand throughout the match but were defied goals on at least ten occasions by the Africans, who were impressive in defense.            

The second consecutive victory put The Whites close to the last 8 berth with six points, ahead of their group showdown against pre-event favourites Tunisia.

Alhammadi, who came in to replace Caio Canedo in the 74th minute, struck the winner in 90+3 minutes as a brilliant performance by Mauritania goalkeeper Mbacke Ndiaye went in vain.    

UAE started in a dominating fashion keeping control of the ball from the beginning but they were not allowed much space by Mauritania. 

Bandar Mohammed created a good opportunity by setting up Canedo but the striker was off target in the 13th minute. The Mauritanians were showing good pace in the counter attacks but were unable to pose much threat to the UAE. 

UAE created an opportunity following an attack from right flank but Bandar was blocked by a defender inside the box in the 27th minute. The Van Marwijk-coached side was doing well with their moves but they were lacking execution. 

The Emiratis were controlling the match with an 80 percent of ball possession at the half-hour mark, yet they had had no answers for solid defending by Mauritania. 

But they increased their attacks making goalkeeper Ndiaye a busy man. The Mauritanian goalkeeper did well to punch the ball away in a dangerous free kick in the 33rd minute. 

Ndiaye thwarted another attack with a diving clearance in an attack led by Canedo before stopping a fiery shot from Ali Saleh in the last minute of the first half. 

The 26-year-old blocked another strike from Ali Ahmed Mabkhout in the stoppage time as Mauritania continued to deny the UAE goal till the half-time whistle. 

UAE came back from the break, desperate for goals but didn’t get the breakthrough despite numerous attacks. 

A shot by Mabkhout just before the one-hour mark went wide before Van Marwijk’s side launched a barrage of attacks.

Al Wasl forward Ali Saleh was finally able to beat a diving Ndiaye with a superb overhead kick, what could have been the goal of the tournament. 

However, the referee disallowed the goal, declaring Mabkhout was off side during the move following the VAR consultation.   

Three minutes before time, Mauritania attacked through Oumar M’bareck, who made a solo run inside the box but Mohamed Omar was there in time to stop the substitute. An appeal for a penalty was turned down by the referee. 

The UAE finally received a winner when Tahnoon Alzaabi’s assist took a touch of Mauritania defender Ablaye Sy and found Alhammadi, who put the ball in to ensure coveted three points for the UAE, who will play Tunisia at the Al Thumama Stadium on December 6.