Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
China were forced to endure a nervy wait before sealing their place at the AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015, Alain Perrin’s charges eventually securing a spot in Australia as the best third-placed team.
In their first Group C qualifier, the Chinese travelled to Dammam to face a formidable Saudi Arabian outfit. After going behind early on, China struck back minutes later through an effort from experienced midfielder Zhao Xuri. It was not to be for China however, as Saudi Arabia found a late winner to record a 2-1 victory.
In their next clash, China played host to 2007 AFC Asian Cup champions Iraq in Changsha. After 93 goalless minutes, Alain Perrin’s men duly broke the deadlock, Yu Dabao’s goal giving the home side a crucial 1-0 win.
They then travelled to Jakarta where they faced group minnows Indonesia. Wu Xi gave the visitors the lead in the 36th minute however a second-half strike from Indonesia’s Boaz Solossa gave the hosts a famous 1-1 draw.
In the return fixture at Shaanxi Province Stadium in Xi’an, China midfielder Wu Lei scored the decisive goal in first half extra-time to help his side to a 1-0 victory and edge the East Asians even further down the path to qualification.
When China hosted Saudi Arabia, with the Saudis undefeated at that stage and firmly established as group favourites, China gained an invaluable point by holding the Green Falcons to a 0-0 draw.
Heading into their final qualifier Alain Perrin’s men knew that a draw against Iraq would be enough to earn them an automatic spot at the 2015 tournament. A loss however would see them potentially hoping for a best third-placed finish or, even worse, missing out altogether on an 11th consecutive appearance at Asia’s biggest football tournament.
China lined up against the 2007 champions in the UAE and got off to a poor start when Younis Mahmoud scored a first half brace to give the Iraqis a 2-0 lead.
The Chinese went further behind when Ali Adnan scored just before the hour mark to leave the visitors in serious danger of missing out on the Asian Cup.
The other crucial match for the Chinese was Lebanon’s Group B game against Thailand. When Lebanon took a 5-1 lead after 63 minutes they suddenly lead the race between the potential best third-placed finishers.
China desperately needed to score to secure a best that crucial third-placed finish and Zhang Xizhe duly delivered with a 73rd minute penalty before a late goal from Thailand ensured China’s qualification for the continental extravaganza Down Under on goal difference and ahead of a disappointed Lebanon.
Following their qualification the Chinese have put together a run of decent results, including most recently a 4-0 win defeat of Kyrgyzstan, and will be confident of progressing from a group featuring Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia and DPR Korea at the AFC Asian Cup in Australia.