Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Changzhou: Almoez Ali scored twice as Qatar qualified for the quarter-finals of the AFC U23 Championship 2018 thanks to an enthralling 2-1 win against 10-man China PR in Group A at the Changzhou Olympic Sports Center on Monday.
The livewire striker struck in both halves following Yao Junsheng’s early effort, to send his team through to the last eight alongside second-placed Uzbekistan, while the host nation, who had captain He Chao sent off, were eliminated from the competition.
In a frenetic start to proceedings, China were ahead after only four minutes. Deng Hangwen did well to outmuscle defender Sultan Al Brake deep inside the Qatar penalty area, before finding Yao who gleefully lashed the ball home from close range.
Qatar’s response was swift however, as Almoez Ali forced a fine sixth minute save out of China goalkeeper Zhou Yuchen, only for Wei Shihao to then flash a header narrowly over the Qatari bar following Yao’s delightful free-kick shortly after.
With Qatar slowly beginning to gain a degree of control, disaster was to strike China on 41 minutes when captain He was handed a second yellow card by referee Alireza Faghani following a foul on talismanic midfielder Akram Afif.
From the resulting free-kick, Bassam Al Rawi rattled the crossbar with a stinging effort, before parity was restored in the dying embers of a fascinating first period courtesy of Almoez Ali’s deft header from a sublime Afif cross.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Jiangyin: Uzbekistan beat Oman 1-0 to progress to the AFC U23 Championship China 2018 Quarter-finals at the Jiangyin Sports Center Stadium on Monday.
Dostonbek Tursunov's goal in the first half was enough to give Uzbekistan a second place finish in Group A, while Oman exited the tournament with no wins to their name.
In the opening minutes, Oman - who made six changes to their starting line-up from their previous match - looked confident playing around the tight spaces, with Al Mandhar Al Rawi and Marwan Awlad Wadi doing a great job in keeping the Uzbek backline nervous with their quick passes.
Eleven minutes in, Al Rawi surged down the middle but his shot was well blocked by defender Obbosjon Otakhonov.
Uzbekistan retaliated with a close attempt seven minutes later, when Azizjon Ganiev’s corner-kick found Zabikhillo Urinboev in the penalty area, but with a difficult angle his header missed to the right.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Changzhou: Striker Almoez Ali has set his sights on continuing the rich vein of form he is currently in after scoring twice against China PR in a 2-1 win that saw Qatar finish top of Group A, and seal a place in the AFC U23 Championship 2018 quarter-finals.
The 21-year-old’s brace took his tally for the tournament to three, and with a last eight tussle against the yet to be confirmed runners-up of Group B to come at Changzhou’s Olympic Sports Center on Friday, Ali is in no mood to stop hitting the back of the net just yet.
“Of course, I feel very happy that we have qualified for the next round and I want to say congratulations to my teammates,” declared the Al Duhail forward who added to his Matchday One strike in a 1-0 victory over Uzbekistan as host nation China were eliminated.
“I am also very happy that I scored the goals.
“I now hope I can continue scoring and (in the process) help my team carry on winning.”
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Changzhou: With the AFC U23 Championship group stage coming to an end for Groups B and C on Tuesday, the-AFC.com clarifies the possible qualification scenarios ahead of the Matchday Three action.
Group B
Game 1: Thailand (THA) v Palestine (PLE): Changzhou Olympic Sports Center
Game 2: Japan (JPN) v DPR Korea (PRK): Jiangyin Sports Center
Japan were the first team to qualify for the quarter-finals and currently have six points, followed by DPR Korea with four and Palestine with one point. Thailand are eliminated, regardless of the their last result.
THA win + PRK win results in = PRK 7pts, JPN 6pts, THA 3pts, PLE 1pts
THA win + Game 2 draw results in = JPN 7pts, PRK 5pts, THA 3pts, PLE 1pts
THA win + JPN win results in = JPN 9pts, PRK 4pts, THA 3pts, PLE 1pts
Game 1 draw + PRK win results in = PRK 7pts, JPN 6pts, PLE 2pts, THA 1pts
Both games drawn results in = JPN 7pts, PRK 5pts, PLE 2pts, THA 1pts
Game 1 draw + JPN win results in = JPN 9pts, PRK 4pts, PLE 2pts, THA 1pts
PLE win + PRK win results in = PRK 7pts, JPN 6pts, PLE 4pts, THA 0pts
PLE win + Game 2 draw results in = JPN 7 pts, PRK 5pts, PLE 4pts, THA 0pts
PLE win + JPN win results in = JPN 9pts, PRK 4pts^^, PLE 4pts^^, THA 0pts
^ Ranking determined on number of points obtained from group match among the teams (Article 9.3.2.1)
^^ Ranking determined on goal difference from the group matches among the teams (Article 9.3.2.2 and 9.3.2.3). If still equal, yellow and red cards will be calculated (Article 9.3.2.8) or the drawing of lots will take place (Article 9.3.2.9) in the order given. If the drawing of lots is required, it will be at the AFC Headquarters hotel on the same night. The timing will be announced by the AFC, taking into account sufficient time for concerned teams to send representatives.