Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Manama: Mohamed Salmeen scored in the opening minute and Faouzi Aiash netted a late free-kick as Bahrain maintained their lead in Group D of the AFC Asian Cup qualifiers with a 2-0 win over bottom side Yemen on Tuesday.
Less than 60 seconds had elapsed at the National Stadium when Salmeen deflected Mohammed Ba Rowis’s attempted clearance into the net to give the home side a dream start.
Goalkeeper Sayed Mohammed Jaafar preserved the lead when he stopped Aiman Al Hagri on a breakaway midway through the first half and Aaish confirmed the win when he curled in a superb free-kick two minutes from the end.
Bahrain had already booked their place in the 2015 finals but the win helped them to remain in first place in the group, one point ahead of Qatar with one round of games remaining.
The defeat was the fifth consecutive suffered in the qualifiers by Yemen who remained rooted in last place.
“We achieved the most important thing tonight as we got a good victory and we remained at the top of the group. We were good tonight and the team has shown good progress since I started coaching the team,” said Bahrain coach Anthony Hudson.
“We played better than in the previous two matches and we took advantage of two chances to score goals and seal the win tonight. We were better side than Yemen and we converted our chances well.
“We had an easy match as we secured our place in the finals and the players had no pressure at all and this was reflected well in the match. Yemen played well and they have good players, but we played better than they did.”
The pressure may have been off for the Bahrainis with a coveted spot in Australia already in the bag but they made the best possible start in rainy conditions in Manama.
Abdulla Omar found space on the right flank and drilled a low cross into the six-yard box which Rowis desperately tried to hack clear only to see the ball deflect off Salmeen and into the net.
Yemen should have drawn level in the 23rd minute when an error by Bahrain captain Mohamed Husain allowed Al Hagri to burst clear with only Jaafar to beat, however, the goalkeeper did well to come off his line and deflect the shot wide with his right leg.
And Ismaeel Abdulatif should have made it 2-0 in the 34th minute when Mahmood Abdulrahman’s cross found him completely unmarked in the six-yard box but with the goal at his mercy, he inexplicably stabbed his shot over the crossbar.
In the second half, Yemen goalkeeper Saoud Al Sowadi did well to punch clear a Husain Ali free-kick while Mohamed Duaij Mahorfi should have done better when he headed Abdulrahman’s cross over the bar.
But a second goal would arrive in the 88th minute when Aaish lined up a free kick on the right 25 yards from goal and drilled his shot unerringly into the bottom corner.
“We had one of the best matches that we played in the qualifiers. We tried to keep Bahrain in their area and stop them from advancing to our area, but we conceded an early goal,” said Yemen coach Sami Naash.
“The early goal affected our players and it also had a negative effect on our plan and balance. The players though, produced a good performance as there was no pressure on them because we had already lost our chance to qualify.
“We controlled the match but we failed to create any scoring chances. Bahrain deserved to win today because they were a better side and they created many scoring chances and they truly deserved to get the three points.”