Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Tehran: Iran made it three-out-of-three in the 2016 AFC U-23 Championship qualifiers on Sunday when they swept to a 6-0 victory over Afghanistan to go two points clear of Saudi Arabia at the top of Group C with a 100% record.
Sardar Azmoun kept up his record of scoring in every game when the Russia-based winger opened the scoring after 12 minutes before capping the win in the 74th minute as the Group C hosts matched the six-goal victory achieved by the Saudis in Sunday’s earlier Group C fixture at the PAS Stadium.
Either side of Azmoun’s double their were goals for Mohammad Moradmand (24th), Milad Kamandani (28th), skipper Alireza Jahanbakhsh (38th) and Roozbeh Cheshmi (61st) as Iran maintained their winning momentum following comprehensive victories over Nepal (5-0) and Palestine (3-0).
Iran will round off their Group C campaign on Tuesday when they take on Saudi Arabia with the winner guaranteed a ticket to the 2016 AFC U-23 Championship.
Ten group winners and five best second-placed teams from all groups will join hosts Qatar, with January’s 16-team competition also serving as Asia’s qualifying tournament for the Olympic Games in Rio.
Photo: Reza Saeedpour / Fars News Agency