Abu Dhabi:  The UAE will gather on Monday, May 26, in Al Ain to prepare for the last phase of the preliminary round of the Asian qualifiers for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

The team will face Iran, Kuwait and Syria in June in a bid to reach the second round of the qualifiers.

The UAE leads Group E with four points from two matches, followed by Iran and Syria and Kuwait.

Title celebration

They will face Iran on June 2 at Azadi (Liberty) stadium in Tehran and in Al Ain on June 7, before travelling to Kuwait to play away on June 14. They will end their campaign on June 22 against Syria in Al Ain. The two top teams of the group will go through to the second round.

Meanwhile, head coach Bruno Metsu is happy with the FA's date for a possible playoff to decide the winners of the league on June 29.

Metsu has said he might postpone the get-together by one day if the league title is decided without a playoff, in order to give the winners a day to celebrate before joining the team's training camp.

Metsu is closely watching the return of midfielder Abdul Rahim Jumaa, the UAE captain and Al Wahda player and defender Adil Abdul Aziz, of Al Ahli.

Jumaa has not been part of the national team since the end of the finals of the Asian Cup last year, while Abdul Aziz's last participation was during the Gulf Cup in January 2007. Both players suffered injuries.