Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Tehran: Guam’s 100% start to the 2018 FIFA World Cup/2019 AFC Asian Cup joint-qualifiers ended on Thursday when the Group D leaders were emphatically beaten 6-0 by Iran on Thursday in their first away match of the campaign.
The Pacific Ocean islanders made a stunning start to the qualifiers with home wins over Turkmenistan and India before Thursday’s meeting with Asia’s top-ranked side, but Iran at the Azadi proved too strong for the Matao, with the three-time Asian champions cruising to a 4-0 lead at the half-time interval
Iran were given a golden opportunity to take a tenth minute lead when referee Khamis Al Marri awarded the home side a penally, which was successfully converted by Ashkan Dejagah before Persepolis forward Mehdi Taremi doubled the advantage just after the half-hour mark.
Russia-based Sardor Azmoun, who scored three times at the 2015 AFC Asian Cup back in January, continued his prolific form for Team Melli with goals in the 34th and 41st minutes as Iran all but sealed the three points by half-time.
Guam showed more resilience after the restart but were breached for a fifth time when Taremi scored his second of the match before Saipa winger Mehdi Torabi sealed the 6-0 win in the last minute.
Iran head to Bangalore to face India on Tuesday, with Stephen Constantine’s side seeking their first points of the campaign following back-to-back defeats, while Guam will be hoping that their home form will see them return to winning ways when their entertain Oman on the same day.
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.