ABU DHABI (AFP) - Ali Adnan swept home a brilliant, last-minute free-kick as former champions Iraq twice hit back to beat Vietnam 3-2 in the Asian Cup on Tuesday (Jan 8).
It was a heart-breaking way for Vietnam to lose in Abu Dhabi, but no more than Iraq deserved for going for the jugular after Humam Tareq had hauled them level on the hour mark.
"The first half was horrible," said Iraq coach Srecko Katanec.
"We showed nothing that we did in training - no power, no personality at all. Maybe it was first-game emotions, the players felt the pressure a little bit."
"I knew it would be a tough game," added the Slovenian.
"But the most important thing was the three points."
Vietnam's Golden Dragons took a shock lead after 24 minutes in the Group D clash in Abu Dhabi, defender Ali Faez panicking under pressure from Nguyen Cong Phuong and clumsily backheeling the ball past goalkeeper Jalal Hassan Hachim.
Iraq, who defied the odds to win an emotional Asian Cup title in 2007, levelled 10 minutes later through striker Mohanad Ali, who profited from a defensive error to rifle home from the edge of the box.
Cong Phuong restored Vietnam's lead three minutes before the break, stabbing in from close range after Nguyen Trong Huang's shot had been parried by Hachim.
But Tareq lashed home a second equaliser following more horrific defending from the Vietnamese, who by that point looked to be running out of steam.
LAZY FOUL
A lazy foul on the edge of the penalty area subsequently presented Adnan with the chance to take all three points and he did not disappoint, curling a left-foot shot into the top corner, prompting several Vietnamese players to slump to the turf in despair.
Iraq join Iran on three points after their bitter rivals thrashed Yemen 5-0 on Monday.
Iraq's circumstances have scarcely improved since thir fairytale success 12 years ago, with security concerns impacting their preparations for tournaments.
But the Lions of Mesopotamia will hope to at least match their run to the Asian Cup semi-finals in Australia four years ago, despite losing several of their top players to retirement.
"If we want to go deep into the tournament we will have to improve," shrugged Katanec.
"But I have a clearer picture now of our overall condition and we will grow into the tournament."
Vietnam coach Park Hang-seo, who steered his side to the southeast Asian title last December, insisted he had no regrets.
"I'm proud of my players," said the South Korean.
"At the end they were exhausted and lost a bit of concentration but we were a little unlucky too."
"We were targeting a point from this game because we play Iran next and obviously they're title favourites," he added.
"It will be very tough from here but we will go again."
Everton's hopes of finishing in seventh and a potential Europa League qualification spot suffered a blow as they were held to a 0-0 draw by Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park in the Premier League on
Eden Hazard late show rescues Chelsea in Wolves draw Eden Hazard spared the under-fire Sarri's blushes with his thunderous stoppage-time equaliser, but it was still a frustrating day for the
Football: Hazard late show rescues Chelsea in Wolves draw
Championship side Birmingham have been docked nine points for breaching financial rules, the English Football League announced on Friday. The Championship side broke the EFL's profitability and sustainability regulations and faced a possible 12-point deduction and a transfer ban. The penalty drops
Birmingham hit with nine-point deduction after breaching
Liverpool Fans Rejoice After Stunning Brentford Bristol City Derby County Hull City Ipswich Town not missed by the fans of his club side. The Reds faithful to took to twitter to express
Red Sox fans have a day to rejoice and - The Boston Globe
Liverpool's attempt to dethrone Manchester City as Premier League champions ended in glorious failure on Sunday, but at least Juergen Klopp's side proved what was possible. As for Chelsea
Tough summer for EPL chasing pack | Singapore Reporter
reporter.sg/article/3125214/tough-summer-for-epl-chasing-pack
Tough summer for EPL chasing pack (May 14 05:00) Straits Times Sport May 14, 2019 5:00 AMLONDON • Liverpool's attempt to dethrone Manchester City as Premier League champions ended in glorious failure on Sunday, but at least Jurgen Klopp's team proved it was possible to take the title race to the wire.
City and Liverpool leave chasing pack facing tough summer
Weary feet to blame for England's fall, Football News & Top
Eusebio Di Francesco was sacked as Roma coach after the team crashed out of the Champions League, the Italian club confirmed on Thursday, with former boss Claudio Ranieri tipped to replace him.
Ranieri lined up as Roma sack Di Francesco after Champions
en.rfi.fr/wire/20190307-ranieri-lined-roma-sack-di-francesco-after-champions-league-flop-0
Ranieri lined up as Roma sack Di Francesco after Champions League flop The 49-year-old led Roma to the Champions League semi-finals last season for the first time since 1984, following an epic
Ranieri lined-up as Roma sack Di Francesco after Champions
The best quarterbacks in the USAs National Football League practice with their receivers over and over again in order to get a feel for their tendencies and competencies. Top QBs and receivers read the defensive scheme and body language of defenders to find the best place on the field to throw and catch the football.
NBA Finals 2019: Warriors may have just begun greatest
A small village in Argentina on Saturday bid farewell to a favorite son, the soccer striker Emiliano Sala, who died along with his pilot last month when his small plane crashed in the English Channel.Friends, family and supporters gathered early Saturday in the village of Progreso, in the country's northeast, for a wake at Mr. Sala's soccer boyhood club, San Martín de Progreso, where his body
Emiliano Sala's Grieving Argentine Hometown Bids Farewell
His street cred in CM development stems largely from his long-time use of both Puppet and Chef. He felt dissatisfied with both, particularly their slowness and over-reliance on Ruby. So he started work SaltStack, choosing the more widely used and arguably easier to use Python as Salt's working language, as opposed to Puppet's Ruby.
Language: Conditional statements and expressions - Puppet (PE
Double injury blow for Spurs ahead of Liverpool clash (Reuters) Dier suffered a groin injury in England's 5-0 win over Czech Republic last week and was forced to withdraw from Gareth Southgate's
Double Injury Blow For Spurs Ahead Of EPL Clash With
Manchester City's hopes of retaining their Premier League title suffered a potentially grievous blow as struggling Newcastle United earned a remarkable 2-1 comeback win over the champions at St James' Park on Tuesday. City were far from their rampant best but a goal after 24 seconds from Sergio
AFC Asian Cup 2019: Hostile crowd awaits Qatar in semi-final against UAE A political dispute in the Gulf will play out for the second time at the Asian Cup when Qatar meet hosts the United Arab Emirates in the semi-final on Tuesday.
Soccer: Hostile crowd awaits Qatar in Asian Cup semi-final
The Premier League voiced "significant concerns" over potential reforms to the Champions League on Friday, saying the changes would damage the thriving domestic game. Reported reforms being put forward for further discussion include changing the current group stage from eight groups of four to four
Premier League Voices Fears Over Proposed UCL Reforms
Prada has pulled monkey-like figurines from its shelves amid racism accusations. figurines from shelves amid outrage. were offensive from the market and are taking immediate steps to learn
Outrage Over Teenager's Death Erupts on Social Media - The
0 Kommentare:
Kommentar veröffentlichen