DOHA: A gritty performance from China PR saw them end their AFC U23 Asian Cup Qatar 2024campaign on a winning note by defeating the United Arab Emirates 2-1 on Monday.
The victory was only the East Asians’ second-ever win in the tournament and saw them finish third in Group B ahead of their opponents, with both already eliminated before kick-off.
Having each failed to score in their preceding two matches, China PR and UAE were looking to salvage some pride and it was the latter who threatened first in the seventh minute. Fahad Bader romped down the left and put in a low cross that was turned into his own goal by Jia Feifan, only for VAR to rule that the winger had been offside when receiving the ball.
That was the best moment of the half for the West Asians, who came under the cosh from a determined China PR side that broke the deadlock in the 24th minute. Harib Abdalla’s half-hearted headed clearance from Tao Qianglong’s cross saw the ball fall to Xie Wenneng near the penalty spot, and the 23-year-old promptly volleyed it into the left bottom corner.
It was China PR’s first goal in six AFC U23 Asian Cupmatches, with the last time they found the back of the net coming in a 3-0 win against Oman in 2018.
The UAE were granted a second reprieve in the 41st minute when referee Hussein Abo Yehia overturned a penalty award following a VAR review, but it lasted just nine minutes. A blind pass from Sultan Ali was intercepted by Liu Zhurun, who shrugged off Zayed Sultan and advanced into the area to drill a low finish past goalkeeper Khaled Tawhid.
Seeking a response, Marcelo Broli made three changes after the restart and reaped near-immediate dividends. Three minutes into the second half, Ahmed Fawzi masterfully brought Abdulla Almenhali’s piercing diagonal pass under control before calmly sliding the ball past the onrushing goalkeeper Li Hao. It was just the second shot on target registered by the UAE throughout the tournament.
That tally soon grew to three when substitute Mohammed Jumah, who had fired a half chance wide already, drew a smart save from Li with a fierce drive just past the hour mark.
In the ascendancy now, UAE probed for an equaliser and Jumah headed a decent opening over before Sultan Ali nearly atoned for his mistake with a curling free-kick that was tipped over at full stretch by Li, who was making his first appearance at this tournament.
A rare glimpse of goal at the other end for Abuduwaili could have seen him wrap up the win but the forward’s tame effort was gratefully collected by Tawhid, who also shovelled away an effort from Zhu Yue late on.
But in the end, UAE simply could not muster enough to avoid a third successive loss even with nine minutes of added time, leaving China PR to celebrate a hard-earned triumph at the Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium.
