UAE playmaker Abdulrahman declared fit for Asian Cup

The United Arab Emirates' Asian Cup hopes were given a huge boost on Friday after Omar Abdulrahman, one of the country's finest players, was declared fit for next month's tournament in Australia.

The playmaker injured his ankle in the UAE's Gulf Cup semifinal loss to Saudi Arabia last month and has not played for Arabian Gulf League Al Ain since.

But he was named in the UAE's 24-man preliminary squad for the Jan 9-31 tournament after showing enough signs of recovery.

"Omar Abdulrahman is fine, his doctor reports he has started jogging," UAE coach Mahdi Ali told reporters in Dubai.

"He needs five to seven days to get back to full fitness."

The UAE have not progressed out of the group stage of the Asian Cup since finishing as runners-up in their home tournament in 1996.

They have been drawn in Group C in Australia alongside three other West Asian sides, Iran, Bahrain and Qatar.

"As I have said before, the ultimate target has always been getting to the World Cup in 2018 and our second target is to get to the last four in Australia," Ali said.

To do this, Ali opted to recall controversial goalkeeper Majed Nasser.

The 31-year-old Al Ahli stopper has had a chequered history of discipline problems, including slapping an opposition coach and receiving a year long ban for headbutting an opponent.

Earlier this year he was banned for six months and fined for spitting at a referee but had the verdict overturned last month.

"Before we announced the squad I went to Al Ahli and sat down with the player and we discussed the matter," Ali said. "We want to give him a second chance.

"He promised to abide by our rules and training regimes, and that he will keep out of trouble. We want to benefit from his  presence and it's a chance for him to prove that he is up to the responsibility."  

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