UAE face Australia in crucial World Cup play-off

The UAE take on Australia in a World Cup play-off at the Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Qatar at 10pm tonight (June 7), with a win taking the team one step closer to the finals in November.

The two teams are battling it out after finishing third in their respective qualifying groups and failing to get to the finals directly.

The winner will stay on in Qatar for a final play-off against Peru on June 13 for the right to compete in the World Cup finals, which are also being held in Qatar.

The UAE will be gunning for a second appearance after their debut in 1990 while Australia will be looking to clinch their fifth consecutive trip to the finals.

Speaking at a press conference held in Qatar, UAE coach Rodolfo Arruabarrena said "It's a match that has us really excited. We know that we are facing an opponent that may be used to these situations, but we will try to be competitive and fight in the match to bring some joy to the Emirati people....

"And we will especially try to make history with the squad. The squad is working hard and like I said, it is a tough match against a tough opponent and we hope to be up to the challenge and play well and to make of the match what we want it to be given our strengths and weaknesses."

UAE player, Caio Canedo, added "we're playing the most important game of our history for our country, talking about football. Of course, we respect Australia, but we do not fear. I think we prepared very well for this match and it's going to be a very tough match, you know, it's going to be decided on details. We're ready to do a big game, we know what we represent, our country, our colours, the UAE people."