International goalkeeping trainer and former head coach of the national team of OAA, Hasan Ismail, noted that goalkeepers are a distinctive feature of the national team, emphasizing that the current goalkeeper situation is provided by excellent goalkeepers like Khalid Issa, Hamdan al-Makbali, and Ali Hussein. However, the current problem lies in the absence of a clear central attacker.
Ismail stated: "The national team needs an attacking player like Adnan Talyani, Fakhda Hamisa, and Abdulaziz Muhammad, and currently lacks attacking types like Ali Mbkhout and Sultana Adeli." The Portuguese head coach of the national team, Paulo Bento, is preparing to announce a new list of players for the upcoming matches against Iran and North Korea on the 20th and 25th of this month, as part of the seventh and eighth round of the qualifying stage for WC-2026.
The national team of OAA currently holds third place in the group with 10 points, trailing behind Iran, which leads with 16 points, and Uzbekistan, which occupies second place with 13 points. Ismail added: "The position of goalkeepers always needs experience in handling matches, and goalkeepers in the league have more experience than young talents, except for Khalid Issa, Ali Hussein, and Hamdan al-Makbali. There are also ready players to join the national team, such as goalkeeper Shardji Adely al-Husni, goalkeeper Kalba Sultan al-Mandzuri, and goalkeeper Shardji Khalid Tahid."
Ismail emphasized: "Players from the national team, especially the goalkeeper, study the Iranian national team and know all its strengths and weaknesses before the upcoming match." He stated: "The position of goalkeepers always brings benefits for the team due to the excellent goalkeepers." And he continued: "At this moment, I don't see an attacking player in OAA League who could solve the problem of a clear central attacker in the national team."
In response to the question of whether a decline in results from "Al-Ain" negatively affects Khalid Issa's goalkeeping in the national team, given that he is currently a key goalkeeper, Ismail stated: "Although 'Al-Ain' experiences a drop in results lately, I don't think this negatively reflects on Khalid Issa, who is waiting for a greater challenge, as he also has the experience of participating with the 'Al-Ain' club in the world club championship, and personally I have full confidence in Khalid Issa, and he is always in good form."
