Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Amman: Hamza Al Daradreh earned a successfully converted penalty before scoring a late winner as Jordan stunned Asian champions Australia with a 2-0 victory on Thursday that saw the Hashemite Kingdom go top of Group B of the 2018 FIFA World Cup/2019 AFC Asian Cup joint-qualifiers.
After a goalless first-half dominated by Australia, Jordan took the lead from the penalty spot just two minutes after the restart when Hassan Abdel-Fattah struck his fourth goal of the qualifiers, after Matthew Sprianovic - a 2014 AFC Champions League winner with Western Sydney Wanderers before his move to China’s Hangzhou Greentown - had pulled down Al Daradreh inside the area.
The Socceroos pressed hard for the equaliser but it was the home side that found the net with Al Daradreh sealing the win with six minutes remaining as Jordan defeat Australia for a second time in FIFA World Cup qualifying following their historic 2-1 win in September 2012 when the two sides met for the first time.
Jordan’s win lifted the Nashama to top of the standings with 10 points, one more than former leaders Australia while Kyrgyzstan remain third following their 2-2 draw with Tajikistan in Thursday’s other Group B fixture.
The group winners and four best runners-up (total 12 teams) will advance to the 2019 AFC Asian Cup finals and the final round of qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
The next best 24 teams from the preliminary stage of the joint qualifiers will compete in a separate competition for the remaining slots (12 slots or 11 slots + 1 slot for the host) in the 24-team 2019 Asian Cup.
NEXT FIXTURES:
October 13: Jordan v Tajikistan
November 12: Kyrgyzstan v Australia
Photo: AFP