The United Arab Emirates gave Uruguay a scare in their opening Olympic match, and things were no different against Great Britain. The hosts began the match in complete control and went 1-0 up a quarter hour in, but ended up pegged back and facing an embarrassing draw before a pair of late goals saw them through.
Great Britain Vs. United Arab Emirates, 2012 Olympics: Final Score 3-1 As GB Survive Scare
Ryan Giggs got things started in the 16th minute with an excellent far-post header from a Craig Bellamy cross, leaving UAE goalkeeper Ali Khaseif with absolutely no chance. Great Britain were up 1-0, and looked as though they were primed to make it more, with the Welsh contingent of Giggs and Bellamy particularly impressive. The latter nearly grabbed another assist when he cut the ball back for Manchester United midfielder Tom Cleverley at the top of the box, but the 22-year-old's snapshot crashed off both posts and out.
It didn’t look as though the miss was going to be a problem, but the UAE got back into the game totally against the run of play via Rashed Eisa and some hilariously poor defending in front of Jack Butland. Seriously, this has to be seen to be believed:
That goal gave the visitors hope, and they spent the next fifteen minutes completely bossing the game, forcing Butland into some scrambling saves as GB desperately tried to keep things level.
And then the match was turned on its head once again. Daniel Sturridge, recently recovered from meningitis, hadn't done much since coming on as a substitute, but he managed to distract Khaseif for long enough on a [] cross for Scott Sinclair to steal in and finish at the far post, and then he got on the scoresheet moments later with a lovely clipped finish after breaking clear of the UAE defence.
At 3-1, the match was over, and Wembley Stadium could relax. 'Team GB' now control their own destiny -- a win or a draw against Uruguay will see them advance from Group A.
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