UAE are set to take on Thailand in a do-or-die 2018 AFC World Cup qualifying Group B clash and coach Edgardo Bauza is determined to attain all three points from the fixture.
The Argentine has only had 12 days with the players to prepare for the encounter on Tuesday for which they are favourites over the hosts who are ranked 127th in the world.
"I am confident that my start will be a good match for the UAE against Thailand, given the good players' situation and their appearance at a good level and with a positive response during the training and preparations that preceded the game," Bauza said at his pre-match press briefing.
The 59-year-old however admitted that he would much rather have spent more time with the team before their first competitive match.
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"I would have preferred to spend at least a month preparing for the team, not just 12 days. Overall, we tried to use that short period well and prepare the players technically and physically for the first task. We hope that we will succeed in that task and that we can make the fans happy," he added.
Nevertheless, Bauza does maintain that he took plenty of information away from the training camps as well as the friendly against Laos.
"We had good preparation in the UAE, Malaysia and Thailand. We benefited greatly from the experience of the friendly against Laos and we have been able to formulate a plan to garner three points against Thailand," said Bauza.
Thailand go into the game on the back of a 2-0 loss to Uzbekistan in a friendly last week.
