Ali Mabkhout withdrawn from UAE squad for Tajikistan and Thailand friendlies

Ali Mabkhout has been withdrawn from the UAE squad for upcoming friendlies against Tajikistan and Thailand – one of a number of players excluded because of injury or fitness concerns.

Mabkhout, the UAE’s all-time leading goalscorer, was the headline call-up last week to Rodolfo Arruabarrena’s 25-man list for the March 19-29 training camp in Abu Dhabi. The UAE face Tajikistan in the capital on Saturday before taking on Thailand three days later.

The 32-year-old, who played almost all of Al Jazira’s Adnoc Pro League match at Ajman on Saturday, was omitted from the UAE squad for the Arabian Gulf Cup in Iraq in January for “technical reasons”. His most recent appearance came last November, in the friendly against Argentina in Abu Dhabi.

Mabkhout has scored 80 goals in 109 international appearances and currently sits second in the 2022/23 Adnoc Pro League scoring charts, with 18 goals.

On Monday, the Football Association confirmed the national team’s technical staff had decided to exclude seven players “due to the conditions of injuries and their need for treatment and rest for a period ranging from one to two weeks”.

Aside from Mabkhout, the players to leave the set-up were captain Walid Abbas, Shabab Al Ahli teammate Yahya Al Ghassani, Al Ain wing-back Bandar Al Ahbabi, Sharjah defenders Khaled Ibrahim and Shaheen Abdulrahman, and Al Nasr midfielder Hussein Mahdi.

Meanwhile, defenders Abdulaziz Haikal (Shabab Al Ahli), Yousef Al Muhairi (Al Wasl), Abdullah Al Karbi (Al Wahda) and Khaled Al Hashemi (Baniyas) have been called up.

The training camp, the first get-together for the UAE since their disappointing Arabian Gulf Cup campaign, forms part of the national team’s preparations primarily for the rescheduled 2023 Asian Cup.