Delhi Private School Dubai (DPS) head coach Naushad Ali admits it would be “very special” to win the inaugural Emirates Islamic NSL Football tournament and be crowned the UAE’s best school football team.
Ali’s Under-16 charges take on New Indian Model School Al Ain (NIMS) as the competition returns this weekend with the knockout stages getting underway in Dubai.
NIMS emerged from a very competitive Abu Dhabi pool unscathed, winning six games and drawing three as they made it to the quarter-finals unbeaten.
DPS finished second in Dubai Pool 2 behind the Indian High School and Ali praised his side’s fitness which he thinks will prove key in the knockout stages.
“We are expecting a very good game and we will give a good fight,” said Ali, who says he and his players are extremely excited about the last eight encounter.
“We have heard NIMS will be a good team but the ball is round so anyone can win.”
Ali says his team aspire to be the finest school side in the Emirates but he revealed he has been instilling confidence by telling his players they are already one of the best, being one of just 16 total quarter-finalists from an original roster of 65 teams.
“We are one of the best teams already in the UAE for doing that so I have been reminding them to boost their confidence, although it would be very special to be able to call ourselves the best school in the UAE,” said Ali.
“They are physically fit and work hard, which will be the key to victory on Saturday. Their fitness is their biggest strength as well as their fighting spirit.”
Dubai Pool 2 winners IHS, meanwhile, will take on Salman Farsi School, who finished runners-up in Dubai Pool 1, and their coach Tapan Das said: “The boys are excited. They will obviously have to play well but we hope we can replicate our group stage form.
“We are delighted to be in the quarter-finals and now we are aiming for better.
“For these boys it will be their only chance at NSL success as they will be ineligible next year so I am expecting a good game from them and they are determined to win.”
In the two other U-16 games, rampant Lycee Francais International Georges Pompidou School are favourites for the trophy after roaring through the group stages with six straight wins, scoring an average of 5.5 goals per game and conceding just two goals in total.
The French international school take on Sharjah’s Alkamal American School on Saturday.
In the remaining U-16 game, Dehli Private School Sharjah take on Abu Dhabi’s Al Yasmina School, who emerged from the most competitive group in the whole tournament to reach this stage.