“This victory is for him. We will fight all the way to reach the FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2025,” said Nasser in tribute to the late Dr. Abdullah Baroun who passed away last Thursday.

Two of the 17-year-old’s outstanding moments came when he pushed two efforts onto the post, when it looked certain that Australia would make a breakthrough.

“I will do anything for this shirt. We did exactly what the coach told us to do. But the job is not done yet. We must go out and beat Vietnam next,” he added.

Goals from Mayed Adel and Mohamed Buti Almarar gave UAE three points, putting them in second place in Group B.

A draw in their final group game against Vietnam could potentially be enough for UAE to secure qualification to the quarter-finals and a ticket to the FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2025 but it would also be dependent on result in the other match between Japan and Australia.

UAE head coach Majed Salem said his team did a thorough analysis on their opponents, which paid off.

“Our aim was to keep possession and exploit the quick transitions, which we succeeded in achieving by scoring two goals. The players' performance in today's match was characterised by strength and focus until the last minute,” he said.

Australia head coach Brad Maloney vowed to prepare his team in the best way for the must-win clash against group leaders Japan on Thursday.

“Disappointed to concede two goals that I thought we could have prevented, but on the same note we created a lot of chances and it could have been a different game. We just have to refocus on the next match,” he said.

Group B is still an open affair with Japan and Australia, who are bottom of the group, only separated by three points.