Vietnam will play a crack United Arab Emirates (UAE) team at the My Dinh National Stadium in Hanoi on February 6 in their first Asian Cup Group E qualifying match.

It will be a massive task for coach Hoang Van Phuc and his players to get anything out of the match against a team that finished runner-up in the 2010 Asian Cup.

The UAE, which will host the 2022 World Cup, won the Gulf Cup of Nations last month and are clearly the odds-on favourite on February 6 night match.

But there are grounds for hope after Phuc's newly-assembled team scored wins in all three friendlies they played recently.

The UAE arrive in Hanoi on February 4 on with their strongest possible lineup.-VNA