DUBAI: Iran claimed bragging rights over arch-rivals Iraq on Wednesday as they finished top of their Asian Cup group after an engrossing but goalless draw at a packed Al Maktoum Stadium in Dubai.
The latest instalment in one of football’s great rivalries failed to live up to their classic 2015 quarter-final, won by Iraq on penalties, as a raw and uncompromising first half gave way to a more measured second period.
It meant that Iran, Carlos Queiroz’s three-time winners, finished top of Group D on goal difference after their 5-0 thrashing of Yemen and 2-0 win over Vietnam.
Iran welcomed back Brighton’s Alireza Jahanbakhsh, last season’s Eredivisie top-scorer, from injury as they set about going unbeaten for a 20th straight game at the group stage.
And in a physical first half in front of a deafening crowd, Iran, Asia’s top-ranked side, were largely on top but couldn’t make their advantage count. As the challenges flew in, Jahanbakhsh and Iraq’s Safaa Hadi both wiped away blood, and Iranian midfielder Saman Ghoddos was lucky not to see red for a stamp. Iran’s Sardar Azmoun came close with a header, Ghoddos saw a powerful drive deflected away and Jahanbakhsh fizzed one over on the rebound. Iran also strongly claimed a penalty when Hadi handled accidentally.
At the other end, Ahmed Yasin’s low shot was just off target and 18-year-old forward Mohanad Ali, scorer of a brilliant solo goal against Yemen, glanced a header wide. Jahanbakhsh withdrew just after the hour mark and Iraq’s Ali followed shortly afterwards, following a final attempt which the teenager drove straight down the throat of goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand.
It looked like both sides were happy to settle for a draw before Iraq’s Humam Tariq swung a cross to substitute forward Alaa Abbas, whose header was acrobatically palmed away by Beiranvand. However, clear-cut chances were scant in the second half as the former war-time foes saved their energies for the bigger challenges to come in the knockout phase.
In the other game, Al Ain: Vietnam kept their hopes of progressing to the Round of 16 of the AFC Asian UAE 2019 alive on Wednesday as Park Hang-seo’s side handed Yemen a 2-0 defeat at the Hazza bin Zayed Stadium that ensures a nervous 24-hour wait for the Southeast Asian side. A trademark free-kick from Nguyen Quang Hai and a second half penalty from captain Que Ngoc Hai earned the Vietnamese all three points, but Park’s side fell short of the three-goal win that would have guaranteed them a place in the next phase of the competition.
Vietnam finished third in Group D and the three points they accumulated from the win over Yemen means they have surpassed the two amassed by Palestine in Group B in the quest for one of the four spots awarded to the best third-placed teams.
However, they now sit behind Kyrgyz Republic on goal difference, meaning the Central Asian side have advanced. The Vietnamese must now await the outcome of the meetings between Lebanon and DPR Korea in Group E and the Group F encounter between Oman and Turkmenistan before knowing if they will extend their stay in the United Arab Emirates. Both sides knew a win would give them the opportunity to go through to the next phase and a tense opening 30 minutes saw neither side impress. Indeed, it was a flash of ill-discipline that ultimately cost the Yemenis the opening goal.
Mudir Al Radaei involved himself in a needless altercation with Nguyen Cong Phuong to concede a free-kick, picking up a yellow card from referee Ahmed Abu Baker Al Kaf, and from the resultant free-kick the Vietnamese took the lead.Vietnam continued their quest for that vital third goal but ran out of time and now must wait to see if they advance to the Round of 16. (Agencies)
