Tue, 30 Nov, -0001
Zerqa City: The UAE scored four times from the penalty spot as the Gulf side defeated Afghanistan 6-0 in their penultimate match in Group B of the qualifiers for the AFC U-19 Championship on Thursday.
Skipper Khalfan Al Shamsi (24th), Rashid Al Hajiri (41st), Ahmed Al Hashmi (55th) and Mohammad Al Abdulla (81st) all successfully converted spot-kicks while Mansur Shawkan and Ahmed Gheilani were also on the score sheet for the UAE with goals in the 44th and 74th minutes respectively.
The UAE blotted their copy book one minute into second-half stoppage time when Abdulla Al Hammadi was sent off for a second bookable offence having already been cautioned in the 57th minute but, the defender’s suspension for the final match notwithstanding, it was to matter little for the Emiratis, whose hopes of qualification to next year’s finals were boosted further by Yemen’s shock 2-1 win over hosts Jordan in the other Group B fixture.
The UAE lead the standings with nine points from their three matches and will round of their Group B on Saturday against hosts Jordan, who a third in the table with four points following their 2-1 loss to Yemen in Thursday’s later fixture.
The winners of the nine groups and the six best runners-up will join hosts Myanmar in next year’s AFC U-19 Championship.