Unlike in South Korea, Paulo Bento's image seems to be at its worst in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The 'Arab Football News' of the UAE reported on the 27th (Korea time) that "the dismissal of head coach Paulo Bento from the UAE was something that had been planned for a long time," stating that "the UAE Football Association wanted to change coaches a long time ago. They just did not dismiss him because other candidates were not willing to take the position."
On the 26th, the UAE Football Association officially announced through their channel that they had decided to dismiss head coach Paulo Bento, a citizen of Portugal, and his coaching staff. Following the UAE's 2-1 victory against North Korea in the 8th match of Group A in the third round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Asia qualifiers held at Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, head coach Bento was dismissed.
After defeating North Korea, the UAE recorded 4 wins, 1 draw, and 3 losses (13 points) and stood in 3rd place in Group A. In this third round of the World Cup Asia qualifiers, the top two teams from each group are awarded direct tickets to the finals. The matches are played in a home-and-away format with 10 games each. Iran, the "leader" in Group A (20 points), has already secured a place in the finals, regardless of the outcome of the remaining 2 matches. The structure is that Uzbekistan (17 points) and the UAE are competing for the 2nd place.
Even if the UAE does not secure a direct spot in the finals, they can challenge for qualification once again in the 4th round of qualifiers, which allows for potential 3rd and 4th place teams. In their upcoming 9th match, the UAE will face Uzbekistan, currently in 2nd place. They must win to improve their ranking, but analysis suggests that it will not be easy to defeat Uzbekistan, a strong team, especially since they barely managed to win against North Korea, the 'bottom of the group.'
In this situation, the UAE Football Association chose to dismiss coach Bento. Bento took over as the head coach of the UAE national team on July 9, 2023. He signed a three-year contract aiming for qualification for the 2026 North American World Cup but left his position with 1 year and 8 months remaining in his term.
Bento started smoothly, winning 4-1 against Costa Rica in a friendly shortly after his appointment. In the second round of World Cup Asia qualifiers that began in November 2023, he recorded 5 wins and 1 draw in 6 matches, finishing first in Group H and qualifying for the final qualifiers. Bento caught attention with a resounding 5-0 victory over Qatar in the third qualifiers in November 2024 and maintained hopes for direct qualification by defeating North Korea 2-1 in March this year.
However, public opinion quickly soured after a 0-2 loss in an away match against Iran on March 20. Additionally, they barely managed to win against North Korea, the 'bottom of the group,' thanks to a late goal in the second half. The UAE under Bento’s regime also did not live up to expectations in the Asian Cup.
In the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup held in Qatar in January 2024, the UAE advanced to the round of 16 with 1 win, 1 draw, and 1 loss in the group stage but was eliminated after a penalty shootout against Tajikistan. This was a disappointing performance compared to the semi-final finish in 2019.
At that time, Bento was also criticized for his declining performance and his starting line-up decisions, which excluded Ali Mabkhout.
Bento coached a total of 26 matches in the UAE, recording 14 wins, 5 draws, and 7 losses. His win rate was about 53.9%, which is considered high among recent UAE national team coaches, but he stepped down due to early elimination in the Asian Cup and poor performance in the second half of the third round of World Cup qualifiers.
Media in the United Arab Emirates seem to welcome coach Bento's departure. The 'Al-Ittihad' outlet noted that "coach Bento was often criticized for his tactics and player selections while leading the UAE," showing a reaction of delight at his dismissal.
Responses from UAE fans on social media also indicated they welcomed coach Bento's dismissal. One fan remarked, "I received good news from the morning. Now there is hope for our national team," while another expressed satisfaction, stating, "Thanks to Allah and the football association. I am really happy."
/mcadoo@osebn.co.kr
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