Tue, 30 Nov, -0001
Doha: Bahrain took first place in Group D of the AFC Asian Cup 2015 qualifiers after they held Qatar to a goalless draw at the Al Gharafa Stadium on Wednesday.
The 2004 semi-finalists were on the defensive for much of the game and they played with 10 men in the closing minutes after Issa Muthana had been shown a red card for a reckless tackle.
But they hung on for the draw which ensured that they finished their qualification campaign unbeaten and with a one-point advantage over the Qataris at the top of the group.
“We achieved our target as we wanted to finish the qualifiers at the top of the group,” said Bahrain coach Anthony Hudson.
“We played a balanced match against our opponents who attacked most of the time and had some good chances. Our main target was to maintain our position on top of the group while at the same time we tried not to concede any goals. I’m happy that we managed to collect 14 points and reach the finals with such good results.”
Qatar had the better of the early exchanges and they created the first opening after five minutes when Abdelkarim Hassan made a surging run to the edge of the Bahrain box before firing a stinging low drive that was spilled by goalkeeper Sayed Mohamad Jaffer but hacked clear by his defence before it could fall to a Qatari foward.
The home side would miss a glorious opportunity to take the lead in the 26th minute as Hassan floated in an inviting cross from the right that eluded Sebastian Soria but was met by Hassan Al Haidos, who glanced his header narrowly wide.
Bahrain’s best opportunity arrived shortly afterwards when a low cross from the left by Waleed Al Hayam went across the face of goal to an unmarked Faisal Boudhoum who saw his shot at the far post well saved by Qatar goalkeeper Qasem Burhan.
The home side stepped up the pressure in the second half and they went close again in the 55th minute when Khalfan Ibrahim’s free-kick from the left was met by Ibrahim Al Ghanim, who directed his header narrowly wide.
Ibrahim posed some problems for the Bahrain defence as he tested Jaffer with a couple of shots from range and then played in an overlapping Mahmood Abdulrahman who fired over the crossbar with the goal at his mercy.
Jaffer would come to his side’s rescue when he stretched out to tip away a low shot that was curling into the bottom corner of his net in the 81st minute.
And although Muthana would receive his marching orders shortly afterwards for sliding in to challenge Talal Al Bloushi and catching him in the face with the studs of his boot, the visitors held on to secure the invaluable point that gave them top spot in Group D.
Both teams had already sealed their berths at next year’s AFC Asian Cup finals in Australia but Qatar coach Fahad Thani was frustrated at his side’s failure to convert their dominance into goals.
“We are not satisfied with the result because we were hoping to win and finish on the top of the group,” he said. “We tried to score but we missed many chances and the match finished in a stalemate.
“We didn’t have a good performance in the first half but in the second period we had some scoring chances but we couldn’t convert them.”