Bangkok: The United Arab Emirates suffered a huge blow to their hopes of a place at the 2018 FIFA World Cup after they were held to a 1-1 draw against Thailand on Tuesday in Bangkok.
Despite the Southeast Asians having picked up just a point from their previous seven qualifiers, the Group B bottom side denied newly-appointed UAE coach Edgardo Bauza and his charges with Milovan Rajevac’s side themselves going close to a memorable first-ever victory in the qualifiers.
All-action Thitipan stands out for Thailand
Shorn of several key players including stars Chanathip Songkrasin, Teerasil Dangda and Theerathon Bunmathan, Thailand fans would have been forgiven for fearing a UAE side featuring reigning AFC Player of the Year Omar Abdulrahman.
Yet Rajevac’s side restricted the Emiratis for long spells throughout and much of that was thanks to the all-action work of Thitipan Puangchan, who popped up in key areas across the pitch.
The 23-year-old came out on top in 10 duels – double that of any other player on the field – and won five tackles, more than twice the number of any in a white or blue shirt on the night.
Two chances created, three crosses, a passing accuracy of 80% and the second highest number of touches of any in the Thailand team underlined his all-round performance.
Omar’s Off Night
Argentine coach Bauza has only been in the job a short time but under him the importance of Abdulrahman has not altered.
The frizzy-haired playmaker once again enjoyed the lion’s share of the ball with match highs in terms of touches (101) and passes attempted (76) but he endured a tough time with a passing accuracy of just 71% and a crossing accuracy of 11% only.
As the passing map above shows, he struggled to create any real incision in his passes with few of his attempts entering the penalty box.
So often Abdulrahman’s partner-in-crime, striker Ali Mabkhout may have scored the equaliser at the death but he too would have been disappointed with his own performance. Six shots off target and five of those inside the box with most noticeably a final chance for a winner at the end blazed over is not indicative of the precision the prolific Al Jazira forward displayed in the recently concluded UAE Pro League season.
Perapat passes test with flying colours
With both Muangthong United and Thailand often reliant on flying full-back Theerathon’s penetrating runs and set-piece wizardry, his stand-in for club and country, Perapat Notechaiya, had big shoes to fill at the Rajamangala.
The 24-year-old, though, put in an important shift on the left flank for the War Elephants – often being doubled up on by Tariq Ahmed and Abdelaziz Sanqour – with more touches than any on his team.
Four of the top five passing combinations featured Perapat and it was from his dangerous cross from the left that Mongkol Tossakrai would score the opener on 69 minutes. He also made seven recoveries of possession and won four duels to cap his successful understudy role.
Photos: Lagardère Sports
Source: the-afc.com