I called EK and they confirmed the upgrade was available, however, they refused to give me the seats I was looking for despite having availability in it (row 6 and row 8.) They told me I can only sit in the last row which was unacceptable for me since people will sit close to me (but with row 6 and 8 I can have an empty seat next to me.) I told the person over EK call center “No thank you I will do the upgrade upon check-in since you refuse to give me the seats I wanted” and then I hung up.
OP - Upgrade availability comes and goes... If you don't grab it, the risk is on you. You should've taken the full upgrade then and there. Refusing the upgrade on the basis of having to sit next to a stranger was your choice.