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STRIKER Ismael Abdullatif believes an indelible ‘team spirit’ within the Bahrain national side and his goal-scoring antics can help catapult the country into the World Cup Finals for the first time.
The 25-year-old is gunning for the Iranians after the kingdom’s mighty neighbours inflicted a 6-0 thrashing on the team in the group qualifier away in Tehran.
Revenge would be sweet indeed on November 11 at the National Stadium in Riffa and three points vital on the long journey towards the 2014 soccer carnival in Brazil.
The player has been on fire in recent games scoring a brace for Bahrain in the country’s 3-1 gold medal winning GCC Games final victory against Saudi Arabia.
Abdullatif, who wears the number 11 shirt, is looking forward to his date with destiny. He said: “I think the Bahrain 11 tournament has definitely prepared us for the battle with Iran. Our first encounter did not go as planned. In fact, I don’t even want to think about it as it was such a horrible defeat.
“Winning gold in the GCC Games has not only prepared us physically but it has boosted our confidence and turned things around for us as a team. We are gunning for glory against Iran. This is going to be a new day for us.
“I urge all Bahraini fans to come out on match day and rattle the stadium with their roars. Let’s show Iran what we are made of.”
At club level he was also on target again at the weekend during Muharraq’s 3-0 victory over Busaiteen in the final of His Majesty, the King’s Cup.
Abdullatif received international acclaim after notching four goals – including a 19-minute first-half hat-trick – during Bahrain’s 5-2 demolition of India at the 2011 Asian Cup.
He is also famous for scoring the dramatic injury time goal in the match against Saudi Arabia in 2009 that sent Bahrain into the 2010 World Cup qualification final play-off round against New Zealand. Unfortunately, Bahrain missed out on a place in the finals in South Africa at the same heartbreaking stage of the competition which witnessed them stumble four years earlier. At that time they were narrowly defeated by Trinidad & Tobago.
This time round the journey so far has been mixed with the defeat again Iran, a draw against Qatar and a victory in a fiery encounter in Indonesia in which Abdullatif and his teammates faced low-flying fireworks, a smoke-filled stadium and the chants of angry fans.
Teenage midfielder Sayed Dhiya Saeed put Bahrain ahead seconds before halftime and Abdullatif scored the second goal in a counter-attack in the 71st minute which resulted in a barrage of fireworks. The game had to be suspended by officials for 15 minutes.
Abdullatif has played club football for Riffa and Al Hala in the kingdom, Al Arabi in Kuwait and the Omani Salalah-based club, Al Nasr. He recently signed a two-year contract with arguably Bahrain’s top club side, Muharraq – winners of the Bahraini Premier League 32 times and Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup winners in 2008.
Abdullatif said: “I am very pleased to be scoring regularly – it’s a real confidence booster. I believe all players go through a phase of glory and perhaps this is my time.”
Now, the Bahrainis have their sights set on Iran. They had defender Rashed Al Hooti sent off in the opening minute of the away fixture and the players readily admit they fell apart afterwards. Lessons have been learned and Abdullatif has faith in his team, English coach Peter Taylor and his own abilities to make amends in nine days time.
He said: “We treat every game as though it is the most important game ever, whether we are playing against a tough team or a weak side.
“We will play our hardest against Iran and give it our all. If we continue as we did against Indonesia then I have high hopes and lots of confidence that we will excel.
“Big thanks go to Peter Taylor who is a fantastic coach. I believe under his guidance we can make it. I am ready to score goals. Inshallah, I can do it again against Iran.
“This is our third shot at the World Cup qualifiers. After the Trinidad and New Zealand games, things changed for us. We are determined to make it to the World Cup Finals this time round and our aim is to make the kingdom and our fans proud ... as well as regain their confidence and trust.”
