UAE seek Gulf Cup 27 semi-final place against Bahrain

The UAE have a chance to settle their place in the Gulf Cup 27 semi-finals when they face defending champions Bahrain on Sunday in Jeddah. Qualification would be secured by a second victory if Qatar beat Yemen or draw with them, giving the UAE a place in the knockout stage before their final group match against Qatar.

The UAE opened Group B with a 4-0 victory over Yemen, while Bahrain began with a 2-0 defeat by Qatar. That result puts the holders under pressure: another loss could eliminate them, depending on what happens in the other group fixture. The UAE are also trying to move beyond the group phase for the first time since their recent run of three consecutive early exits.

The UAE won the Gulf title in 2007 and 2013 and have started this campaign strongly under Croatian coach Zlatko Dalić. He has cautioned his players against treating the opening result as more than an early step and identified qualification from the group as the immediate objective. Bahrain coach Dragan Talajić is seeking a response after the loss to Qatar and has backed his squad to recover by addressing the errors from that match.

Bahrain will be without Abbas Al-Asfoor, who was dismissed after giving away a penalty during stoppage time against Qatar. Qatar, meanwhile, can also guarantee progress with a second win if the UAE defeat or draw with Bahrain. Yemen are trying to preserve their own qualification hopes after the UAE ended their run of eight official matches without defeat.