Schweinsteiger to Miss Friendlies with Knee Injury
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NBA | Page 8 GOLF | Page 9 Defense Tiger’s injuries To Advertise here carries self-infl icted, Call: 444 11 300, 444 66 621 Thunder says ex-caddie past Rockets Williams Thursday, March 24, 2016 CRICKET Jumada II 15, 1437 AH India pull off a heist GULF TIMES with a one-run win over Bangladesh SPORT Page 5 2018 WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS QATAR VS HONG KONG 7PM All guns blazing: Qatar keen to continue winning run ‘For us winning and getting three points will give us more confidence and reinforce our position as a team and also help us improve our rankings’ Qatar team during a training session By Joe Koraith Doha hen you are fi ring on all cylinders, why bother slowing down. That’s the approach Qatar coach WJose Daniel Carreno is adopting, going into today’s 2018 World Cup qualifi er against Hong Kong. With qualifi cation into the third round of Asian World Cup qualifi ers already in the bag, one would have expected Carreno to blood a few youngsters. But the Uruguayan has no intentions of taking the foot off the pedal. Today, at the Jassim bin Hamad sta- dium, Carreno will fi eld a full strength lineup, similar to one that played in the last match, the 3-0 away win over Bhu- tan. “There isn’t going to be a huge dif- ference to the lineup as compared to the last match. Against Hong Kong we will Qatar coach Jose Daniel Carreno (left) and Hong Kong coach Kim Pan-gon. play with a lineup that we think is ideal for the match,” said Carreno during the Qatar in their last group game. A win But Pan-gon believes that his team’s pre-match press conference yesterday. will greatly increase Hong Kong’s strong character will hold them in “I do not think that a match in the chances and even a draw will boost good stead. “We are focused on our World Cup qualifi ers can be used to try their cause. target. Our strong point is that we new tactics. Any player who will play “This is a big challenge for us be- have a strong fi ghting spirit. We are is because we believe that he will add cause we are playing against a strong, very confi dent about the game,” said value to the squad. There are some attacking team. If we can take one or the South Korean yesterday. friendly matches at the end of May three points, then something can hap- Qatar coach Carreno is expecting where we can try out other players,” pen for us. We are not playing under Hong Kong to be a diffi cult opponent. he added. pressure. We’re going to go out there “The diffi culty of the match lies in the The Qatar coach doesn’t want his and enjoy our game,” said Hong Kong fact that Hong Kong have no other op- team to lose the momentum. “For us coach Kim Pan-gon yesterday. tion but to win this match. They have winning and getting three points will The possibility of knocking China out come to Doha to get three points. This give us more confi dence and reinforce of the competition will work as a moti- won’t be an easy match for us,” said our position as a team and also help vating factor, believes Pan-gon. “We’re Carreno. us improve our rankings. We’re lucky just looking forward to make history for While Qatar have comfortably qual- to have guaranteed our qualifi cation. us. We will fi ght. Every player knows the ifi ed for the third round, getting that This is an opportunity for us to re- importance of this game. I’m confi dent coveted spot in the 2018 World Cup is inforce our position as a team,” said that we will fi ght for the win,” said the still a long away ahead and will require the 52-year-old. Qatar are currently Hong Kong coach. a lot of eff ort, warns Carreno. “To be ranked 80th in the world. “it will be a big achievement if we in the World Cup in Russia is our ob- While Qatar will be playing for the stay in second. To fi nish ahead of a jective. We know that it’s going to be win, the match is of more importance huge country like China will be an diffi cult. There are many strong teams to their opponents. Hong Kong have amazing story. It will be amazing not in the AFC. We trust our players. But a historic chance to fi nish second in just for the players but also the citi- our participation in Russia requires a Group C and thus deny China a chance zens,” added Pan-gon. lot of work,” said the Uruguayan. to progress to the next round. This is With Qatar having scored 27 goals That’s a fi nish line far away, with Hong Kong’s last group match. They so far, the maximum amongst the multiple hurdles. For now, the imme- currently have a three-point gap over Asian teams, Hong Kong will have diate one is to deliver a good perform- China who have a game in hand. China a tough time containing the likes of ance at home against Hong Kong and play Maldives today and then take on Rodrigo Tabata and Sebastian Soria. keep the momentum going. Gulf Times 2 Thursday, March 24, 2016 FOOTBALL PREVIEW Big-spending China facing World Cup woe AFP China host Maldives today with Hong Kong which left Chi- Chilly conditions in neutral Wuhan and unbeaten Qatar on Tuesday, na staring at elimination. venue Tehran are among the ma- Postecoglou wants Australia to dominate world qualifying needing to win both games to jor concerns for the champions leapfrog Hong Kong into second Harry’s hotshots of steamy Southeast Asia, who Australia coach Ange Postecoglou wants the oglou has re-fashioned Australia from a stodgy, hina’s spending power place in Group C. Elsewhere former Tottenham have drafted in a doctor to help Socceroos to dominate their Asian rivals as they blue-collar outfit into a more enterprising team has taken football by Even then, China have fi ve Hotspur boss Harry Redknapp them cope. continue their quest to qualify for the 2018 Russia and guided them to victory in the Asian Cup on storm but the national countries ahead of them in the will hope to inspire Jordan’s “The weather in Tehran is a World Cup. Australia host Tajikistan in Adelaide home soil last year. team is facing more race to progress as one of the campaign as he begins a two- concern as it is quite cold,” said today and second-placed Jordan in Sydney next Australia have only one defeat away to Jordan in WorldC Cup heartache heading into four best-performing second- game stint with the Middle East- coach Kiatisuk Senamuang, ac- Tuesday as they look to wrap up top spot in Group the current round of world qualifying, while top- a qualifying showdown today. placed teams, along with the ern team. cording to the Asian Football B of Asian qualifying and advance to the next ping the group with 17 goals from their six match- Chinese clubs splurged a eight group winners. Al Nashama (The Chivalrous) Confederation (AFC) website. phase. es. Evergreen forward Tim Cahill, the nation’s most world-leading 331 million euros The matches double as quali- trail Australia by two points in “We have contacted a doctor Under former boss Holger Osieck, Australia had to prolific all-time scorer, has been responsible for six ($371 million) on players in the fi ers for the next Asian Cup, Group B with two matches left, in Iran already so the boys will be scrape into the 2014 Brazil finals with a late goal in of them, including a brace against the Tajiks away January-February transfer win- meaning China is likely to have culminating in Tuesday’s clash looked after well. We have come their final qualifier against Iraq. last September. dow, and President Xi Jinping is to go through a separate round of with the Asian Cup-holders in many days in advance to help the But Postecoglou said he would not be satisfied Cahill will be 38 by the time the Russian World Cup leading a concerted push to turn games to reach the 2019 tourna- Sydney. players get used to the weather with sneaking into Russia. “Just getting through arrives and Postecoglou is keen to blood some China into a footballing power. ment in the UAE. “Do I think we will reach the here.” isn’t going to satisfy me,” Postecoglou told report- new strikers, including Greek-born forward Apos- But Team Dragon will prob- “Frankly speaking, from Chi- fi nals? I hope so,” Redknapp Australia play Tajikistan at ers in Adelaide on Wednesday. “We are looking to tolos Giannou, who has been called into the squad ably have to wait until Qatar na’s point of view, the Maldives said this week, ahead of Thurs- home todasy before taking on build something more meaningful than that. for the Tajikistan and Jordan qualifiers. 2022 to reach their second World national team doesn’t repre- day’s home game against Bang- Redknapp’s Jordan next week, “We could sneak through, but what does that “Historically, we have never really produced an Cup after a stumbling attempt to sent the slightest threat,” striker ladesh. while Group A leaders Saudi mean? It doesn’t really mean anything, getting out-and-out goalscoring striker, not many anyway make the next edition in Russia Yang Xu told Chinese broad- “We will try everything in our Arabia host struggling Malaysia through to the next stage.