JAKARTA - The coach of the United Arab Emirates U-17 national team (UAE) Alberto Gonzalez poked at the quality of the Pakansari Stadium field grass, Cibinong, Bogor, after his team was defeated by Indonesia 2-3 in the Group B match of the 2023 U-17 Asian Cup Qualification, Wednesday night.
"The field conditions used are two matches in one day, in the midst of the rainy weather, of course it is not beneficial for teams who play with possession," Alberto said after the match was over, quoted by Antara.
According to him, uneven grass in the field makes it difficult for the UAE U-17 national team to develop the game.
That's because, in their tactics, they want to dominate the match with short passes.
Alberto said the UAE could play with a direct gastrical feed forward (direct) with such field conditions. However, they didn't.
"This is because we continue to try to control the match in our own way even though the field is not profitable. We recommend to AFC to pay attention to the quality of the grass in the next competitions," said Alberto.
Not once did Alberto Gonzalez mention the Pakansari Stadium field. Previously, he stated the same thing after facing Palestine on Monday, October 3.
At that time, the match was stopped for a moment because of the heavy rain, the field was inundated. As a result, the ball could not move smoothly.
However, the UAE at that time was able to overcome the situation and won with a score of 4-3.
The defeat to Indonesia made the UAE (six points, three matches) drop to second place in Group B qualification Group U-17 2023 due to losing "head to head" and goal difference from Indonesia (six points, two matches) at the top.
The third place in Group B is occupied by Malaysia with four points from two matches. Guam and Palestine occupy the fourth and fifth positions of the group.
Even though they are in second place, the UAE's chances of the 2023 U-17 Asian Cup are still open as long as they are able to beat Malaysia in their last match, Friday tomorrow. On the same day, Indonesia will try the strength of Palestine.
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