LONDON: Alberto Zaccheroni took the blame for the UAE’s 4-0 defeat to Qatar in the Asian Cup semifinal and admitted his stint in the hot seat may be over.
Goals from from Boualem Khoukhi, Almoez Ali, Hasan Al-Haydos and Hamid Ismaeil sealed the hosts’ fate leaving a disconsolate UAE coach to lament a performance that just was not good enough on the day.
“I would like to apologise to UAE fans for the result. We wanted to make UAE people happy … we admit the Qatari team were better on the pitch,” Zaccheroni said.
“We could not perform as we wanted. I am the coach, I am the first one to be held responsible. I admit the tactics I used during this game at the beginning did not pay off. I tried to change but it was too late.”
Throughout the tournament the hosts had regularly failed to hit top gear and underwhelmed in draws against Bahrain and Thailand in the Group stage, before victories over Kyrgyzstan and Australia saw them into the last four.
There it was hoped that home advantage and an improved performance would pay off, but ultimately it was not to be as Qatar sent the UAE crashing out.
Having been given a contract until the end of the tournament the Italian coach sounded like a man who did not expect to stay on in the job.
“Concerning my future, I took charge of the UAE team 15 months ago. I worked with dedication and did my best ... I signed the contract until the end of the Asian Cup,” Zaccheroni said.
“To reach the semifinal was not the expectation because I wanted to win the Asian Cup. For me, it’s not a satisfactory result.
“I took charge of the team 15 months ago. We didn’t succeed in achieving our goals, but I’m very proud to have worked with the UAE team.
“Our objective from the beginning was to win the Asian Cup but we fell short. There was a lot of pressure on the players in this game, but I think they handled it well.”
Khoukhi gave Qatar the lead in the 22nd minute, and Ali doubled the advantage 15 minutes later. Ali's goal was his eighth of the tournament, equaling the record set by Iran forward Ali Daei in 1996 when the Asian Cup was also hosted by the UAE. The 22-year-old Ali will have a chance to break the record against Japan on Friday.
Qatar added two more goals late in the match, the first from Al-Haydos in the 80th minute and the last from Ismaeil seconds after coming off the bench with time winding down.
The UAE played the final seconds with 10 men after Ismail Ahmed was sent off for a rough tackle.
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Alberto Zaccheroni takes the blame for UAE defeat to Qatar in Asian Cup semifinal
Alberto Zaccheroni takes the blame for UAE defeat to Qatar in Asian Cup semifinal
- Italian boss left to lament poor performance as hosts endure heartache in Abu Dhabi.
- Praises effort of the players as he takes responsibility for last-four exit.
UFC Fight Night: Manel Kape TKOs Brandon Royval, wants title shot
- Kape kept his messaging simple: it’s a title shot or bust next year as he targets newly crowned champion Joshua Van (16-2 MMA)
The final UFC event of the year may have ignited a new UFC flyweight contender in Manel Kape. Kape kept his newfound momentum afloat in the main event of UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas, finishing former title challenger Brandon Royval with a right hook, followed by a flurry of punches at 3:18 in Round 1.
Kape kept his messaging simple: it’s a title shot or bust next year as he targets newly crowned champion Joshua Van (16-2 MMA).
“Let’s fight in Houston in February, or wherever you want,” Kape said after the fight. “Just sign the contract.”
Kape (22-7 MMA) continued his winning ways with his third straight triumph, while Royval (17-9 MMA) has lost two straight while being two days shy of his two-year anniversary to his lone UFC title fight opposite then-champion Alexandre Pantoja (30-6 MMA).
In the co-headliner, featherweight Kevin Vallejos landed a brutal second-round spinning back fist to send Giga Chikadze to the canvas that eventually resulted in a TKO stoppage at 1:29. Vallejos (17-1 MMA) ran his UFC record to 3-0, while Chikadze (15-6 MMA) has lost three in a row.
The card moved along with middleweight Cezary Oleksiejczuk winning a unanimous decision against Cesar Almeida, taking all three cards by a 30-27 score. Oleksiejczuk (17-3 MMA) has won five in a row, making good on his promotional debut. Contrary to a one-sided performance, Almeida (7-2 MMA) had a two-fight winning streak halted, marking his first loss under the UFC banner.
The card’s momentum began to pick up with a devastating knockout from featherweight Melquizael Costa via a head-kick finish against Morgan Charriere 1:14 into the opening round. Costa (25-7 MMA) extended his winning streak to five, winning four of those fights during the calendar year. Charriere (21-12-1 MMA) had never been knocked out and has lost three of his last five appearances.
The next fight also saw the judges get involved after a well-rounded three- round affair between heavyweights Kennedy Nzechukwu and Marcus Buchecha. Unfortunately for both men, after 15 minutes, a winner wasn’t declared as the judges ruled the bout a 28-28 majority draw. Nzechukwu (14-6-1 MMA) had won two of his last three fights, while Buchecha (5-2-1 MMA) is still searching for his first UFC win after having made his debut in July.
UFC Vegas 112 kicked off a six-fight main card that saw King Green win a split decision against Lance Gibson Jr., earning the victory by claiming two of the judges’ scorecards 29-28, 28-29, 29-28. The fight marked the 53rd MMA appearance for Green (33-17-1 MMA) and capped his 12th year in the UFC. Meanwhile, Gibson (9-2 MMA) was making his debut.
The UFC is off before its 2026 schedule begins with UFC 324 on Jan. 24 in Las Vegas with a championship doubleheader at T-Mobile Arena.
Kape kept his messaging simple: it’s a title shot or bust next year as he targets newly crowned champion Joshua Van (16-2 MMA).
“Let’s fight in Houston in February, or wherever you want,” Kape said after the fight. “Just sign the contract.”
Kape (22-7 MMA) continued his winning ways with his third straight triumph, while Royval (17-9 MMA) has lost two straight while being two days shy of his two-year anniversary to his lone UFC title fight opposite then-champion Alexandre Pantoja (30-6 MMA).
In the co-headliner, featherweight Kevin Vallejos landed a brutal second-round spinning back fist to send Giga Chikadze to the canvas that eventually resulted in a TKO stoppage at 1:29. Vallejos (17-1 MMA) ran his UFC record to 3-0, while Chikadze (15-6 MMA) has lost three in a row.
The card moved along with middleweight Cezary Oleksiejczuk winning a unanimous decision against Cesar Almeida, taking all three cards by a 30-27 score. Oleksiejczuk (17-3 MMA) has won five in a row, making good on his promotional debut. Contrary to a one-sided performance, Almeida (7-2 MMA) had a two-fight winning streak halted, marking his first loss under the UFC banner.
The card’s momentum began to pick up with a devastating knockout from featherweight Melquizael Costa via a head-kick finish against Morgan Charriere 1:14 into the opening round. Costa (25-7 MMA) extended his winning streak to five, winning four of those fights during the calendar year. Charriere (21-12-1 MMA) had never been knocked out and has lost three of his last five appearances.
The next fight also saw the judges get involved after a well-rounded three- round affair between heavyweights Kennedy Nzechukwu and Marcus Buchecha. Unfortunately for both men, after 15 minutes, a winner wasn’t declared as the judges ruled the bout a 28-28 majority draw. Nzechukwu (14-6-1 MMA) had won two of his last three fights, while Buchecha (5-2-1 MMA) is still searching for his first UFC win after having made his debut in July.
UFC Vegas 112 kicked off a six-fight main card that saw King Green win a split decision against Lance Gibson Jr., earning the victory by claiming two of the judges’ scorecards 29-28, 28-29, 29-28. The fight marked the 53rd MMA appearance for Green (33-17-1 MMA) and capped his 12th year in the UFC. Meanwhile, Gibson (9-2 MMA) was making his debut.
The UFC is off before its 2026 schedule begins with UFC 324 on Jan. 24 in Las Vegas with a championship doubleheader at T-Mobile Arena.
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