The UAE national team have been put through their paces by new manager Jorge Luis Pinto.
The squad are currently based in Al Ain as they get to know the Colombian, who arrived in the Emirates earlier this week having accepted the job last month. The former Colombia, Costa Rica and Honduras manager succeeded Ivan Jovanovic.
Pinto, 67, has overseen training since Wednesday night, with the team spending Thursday on the pitch at the Hazza bin Zayed Stadium. The squad were greeted at the ground by a huge banner reading in Arabic: “With you guys there is no impossible. We will achieve our ambitions.”
Pinto’s primary objective is to lead the UAE to the World Cup in Qatar in two years’ time. At present, the national team sit fourth in Group G in the second phase of qualification, five points off leaders Vietnam with four matches remaining, although they do have a game in hand.
The UAE resume their campaign on October 8 with the home match against Malaysia, before facing Indonesia away five days later. They complete Round 2 with home matches against Thailand and Vietnam, on November 12 and 17.
Only the top team are guaranteed to progress, alongside the four best runners-up from the eight groups. The UAE have only once qualified for a World Cup, in 1990.
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Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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1.
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United States
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2.
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China
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3.
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UAE
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4.
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Japan
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5
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Norway
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6.
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Canada
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7.
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Singapore
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8.
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Australia
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9.
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Saudi Arabia
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10.
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South Korea
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Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
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MATCH INFO
Syria v Australia
2018 World Cup qualifying: Asia fourth round play-off first leg
Venue: Hang Jebat Stadium (Malacca, Malayisa)
Kick-off: Thursday, 4.30pm (UAE)
Watch: beIN Sports HD
* Second leg in Australia scheduled for October 10
