Australia advance in Asian World Cup qualifying
DOHA: Australia marched into the third and final phase of Asian qualifying for the 2022 World Cup after a 3-0 win over 10-man Nepal in Kuwait that ensured they will win Group ‘B’ with a game to spare on Friday.
The Socceroos, overwhelming favourites to win the group, took their tally to 21 points in an unbeaten run of seven matches on a hectic day in the Covid-19 impacted competition.
Graham Arnold’s side join Japan, Syria and South Korea in the third phase of the preliminaries, where 12 nations will compete for the continent’s four guaranteed places at the finals.
The winners in seven of the eight qualifying groups advance to the next round alongside the five runners-up with the best records.
World Cup hosts Qatar have secured top spot in Group ‘E’ but will not progress to the third round as they already have an automatic place at the finals.
Australia made light work of the Nepalese, with Matthew Leckie giving Arnold’s side a sixth minute lead with a fine header off an Aziz Behich cross, before Croatia-born Fran Karacic struck in the 38th minute from Leckie’s pass.
Considering their lack of any footballing pedigree — they are ranked 171st in the FIFA rankings compared to Australia’s 41st — Nepal acquitted themselves well with a plucky display throughout the match at the Jaber al-Ahmad International Stadium in Kuwait City.
Rohit Chand’s red card before halftime made matters even more difficult for Nepal and the Australians put the result beyond doubt through Martin Boyle’s strike from close range off a Jackson Irvine pass in the 57th minute.
Jordan’s 0-0 draw with Kuwait in the other Group ‘B’ game leaves both nations battling for second place with one match remaining.
Earlier, Iran hammered Cambodia 10-0 for their fifth win in seven matches to keep their hopes of winning Group ‘C’ alive ahead of a meeting with neighbours Iraq on Tuesday.
Kaveh Rezaei scored a second-half brace in the match that saw eight other Iranians finding the net at the Bahrain National Stadium in Riffa.
Iran’s fifth victory in seven games took their tally to 15 at the top, but less than an hour later Iraq pipped Hong Kong 1-0 to reclaim the group lead with 17 points.
Mohamed Qasem scored the only goal of the match in the 13th minute for Iraq.
A draw on Tuesday will be enough to earn Iraq top spot in the group while anything other than a win would leave Iran sweating on the outcome of games elsewhere to determine whether they advance.
There will be another showdown between first and second in Group ‘G’. Vietnam need a draw in their final Group ‘G’ against the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday to progress after Que Ngoc Hai’s 83rd minute penalty earned a 2-1 win over Malaysia to maintain their unbeaten second-round run.
Park Hang-seo’s side remain two points clear of the Bert van Marwijk-coached Emiratis, who hammered Indonesia 5-0 to maintain the pressure on the South East Asians and give themselves a chance of climbing into top spot.
Saudi Arabia are just one point away from topping Group ‘D’ after clinching a 3-0 win over Singapore, with all the goals coming late in the second half.
Singapore stonewalled the Saudis for most of the match before Salem al-Dawsari broke the deadlock in the 83rd minute with a right-footed shot from the centre of the box.
Three minutes later, Fahad al-Muwallad made it 2-0 before Sahel al-Shehri finished off proceedings with a low shot in the sixth minute of stoppage time.
Also in Group ‘D’, Uzbekistan pipped Yemen 1-0 thanks to Jaliloddin Masharipov’s penalty to keep the pressure on the Saudis.
The table-toppers will be decided on Tuesday when both teams square off in Riyadh.
In Group ‘A’, China handed the Maldives a 5-0 thrashing in Sharjah to guarantee second place behind Syria, with the pair due to meet on Tuesday in a game the Chinese must win to keep alive their hopes of adding to their sole World Cup appearance in 2002.
The team’s form is good. In three games since the second round resumed on May 30, China have taken nine points, scored 14 goals and conceded none. But Syria will be a tougher test.
Elsewhere, Kyrgyzstan thrashed Myanmar 8-1, Philippines outclassed Guam 3-0, and Oman defeated Afghanistan 2-1.
Published in Dawn, June 13th, 2021
