It was a dramatic ending to a day which saw the V.League resume with fans in the stands following the suspension of matches due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

A perfect five wins from five games has marked Syria out not only as the leaders of Group A ahead of China PR but sees the West Asian nation stand tallest across the entirety of the qualifying phase with the best return to date.

These permanent fixtures in a fan’s memory bank can be lodged there thanks to a glorious last-minute winner, a sterling come-from-behind victory or – in the case of Islamic Republic of Iran icon Ali Daei – a superb virtuoso display.

Midway through 1996 Daei, then aged 27, had only scored seven of his eventual 109 goals for his country, but the next six months would produce 22 international goals, including one of the greatest individual performances in the history of Asian football.

But while a long list of Dutch stars have become household names, the country also has a history of welcoming some of Asia’s outstanding players.

From 1980s pioneers like Huh Jung-moo and Fandi Ahmad to the stars of the modern game, the Eredivisie has played host to some of the continent’s best and brightest, making it a league of interest for generations of Asian fans.

Our list features several title winners and a league top goal scorer, but which of these icons deserves the title of Asia’s best?

Here are our nominees:

The time was March, 2005 when 15-year-old Amiri and his parents — then refugees in Pakistan — returned to the Afghanistan capital Kabul for a cousin's wedding. He was then an adoring fan of Manchester United rising star Cristiano Ronaldo, while his cousin was playing with local club Shoa FC.

After starting out in youth football at the prestigious Ammo Baba Academy in Baghdad, Hadi got his first senior team experience with Amant Baghdad SC. He then moved between Al-Minaa SC, Al-Zawra'a SC and Al-Shorta SC before being called up to the Iraqi national team for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup and subsequent Asian Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and AFC Asian Cup China 2023.

In an exclusive interview with FIFA.com, the 21-year-old discussed his move to Russia and the difficulties faced during his first professional assignment outside Iraq. He also expressed his firm desire to continue playing in the host nation of world football’s flagship event two years ago.

We kicked off last week's showcase with five fantastic free-kicks, and now we turn to some stunning strikes from distance that span the Continent from Kyrgz Republic to Vietnam.