Palestine on Tuesday reached the Asian Cup knockout rounds for the first time with their maiden win in the history of the competition, but China’s fate was sealed at the first hurdle.
Syria also made history by reaching the round-of-16 in Qatar, with Uzbekistan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) advancing as well on another night of high drama.
Palestine narrowly missed out on second spot in Group C, but squeezed through as one of the four best third-placed teams after beating Hong Kong 3-0.
Photo: AFP
The victory in Doha comes against the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
Palestine’s players and staff have lost loved ones in the conflict and said before the tournament that they hoped to provide some comfort to those suffering back home.
Oday Dabbagh scored in each half and Zeid Qunbar grabbed another before Palestine were given a late scare when Hong Kong missed a penalty.
“Thank you to the fans who are coming to support Palestine,” captain Musab Al-Battat told beIN SPORTS. “Thank you from our heart.”
The UAE went through in second place despite losing 2-1 to group winners Iran.
Syria also reached the knockout rounds for the first time with a 1-0 win over Igor Stimac’s India in Group B.
Omar Khribin was Syria’s hero, his 76th-minute goal also confirming China’s early exit from the competition.
China had hoped to sneak through with their third place and two points in Group A.
They failed to score in any of their three matches.
Australia topped Group B following a 1-1 draw with Uzbekistan, with Hector Cuper’s Syria progressing with those two teams as one of the best third-placed teams.
India came bottom and are heading home with no wins or goals.
“We are very happy with the qualification, very proud of my players, they made huge sacrifices to get this result,” Argentine coach Cuper said. “We played the game with one aim in our mind — to win, and we managed to do that. We don’t want to stop here.”
Despite another early exit, Stimac said India would take home “good lessons.”
“It was a learning experience for the boys,” he said, having seen his team beaten 2-0 by Australia and 3-0 by Uzbekistan. “My satisfaction is that we managed to create chances against Australia, Uzbekistan and Syria.”
In the other game between Uzbekistan and Australia, who had already qualified, the Socceroos took a controversial lead through a Martin Boyle penalty in first-half stoppage-time.
A video assistant referee check harshly ruled that the ball had hit Uzbekistan defender Odiljon Hamrobekov’s hand in the buildup as he slid in to tackle Australia forward Kusini Yengi.
Boyle dispatched the penalty low into the corner.
“If this is a penalty I don’t understand the rules. There is no intention,” Uzbekistan coach Srecko Katanec said.
Uzbekistan, who have been touted as outsiders for the title, leveled 12 minutes from time when substitute Azizbek Turgunboev got on the end of a cross to head home.
Manchester City have reached do-or-die territory in the UEFA Champions League earlier than expected ahead of what Pep Guardiola has described as a “final” against Club Brugge today. City have disproved the suggestion a new format to Europe’s top club competition would remove any jeopardy for the top clubs as Guardiola stares down the barrel of failing to make the Champions League knockout stages for the first time in his career. The English champions have endured a torrid season both in their English Premier League title defense and on the continent. A run of one win in 13 games, which included Champions League
BACK-TO-BACK: The League One club, which is owned by stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, is sparing no expense to clinch promotion to the Championship Hollywood endings are pricey, even in England’s third division. In pursuit of their third straight promotion, Wrexham AFC splashed some cash at League One rival Reading to secure the services of striker Sam Smith. The Welsh club owned by actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney confirmed the signing of the 26-year-old Smith on Friday. He is one of the top scorers in the third division. The transfer fee was not disclosed, but British media widely reported it to be about ￡2 million (US$2.48 million) — not extravagant, but a hefty price at this level and it would be about the same figure that
Oklahoma City star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on Sunday poured in 35 points as the Thunder grabbed a bounce-back 118-108 victory in Portland to push their NBA-best record to 37-8. The Thunder, surprised by the short-handed Dallas Mavericks on Thursday, fended off a late surge from the Trail Blazers to snap their four-game winning streak. Jalen Williams scored 24 points and Isaiah Joe added 16 off the bench. Center Isaiah Hartenstein, back after a five-game absence with a calf injury, added 14 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and a big block. The Western Conference leaders were under pressure late as Portland, trailing by 15 heading
The Golden State Warriors on Wednesday withstood Oklahoma City star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s 52-point outburst to beat the Western Conference leading Thunder 116-109. Andrew Wiggins scored 27 points and Warriors superstar Stephen Curry scored 17 of his 21 points in the second half as Golden State erased a double-digit deficit and pulled away late for the victory. “We just stayed solid,” said Curry, who entered the contest mired in a shooting slump and had just four points on one basket in the first half. “Just all-around effort.” The Thunder, fueled by 31 first-half points from Gilgeous-Alexander, led by as many as 14 in the
RSS