The White Wolves will be featuring in their seventh edition of the Continental showpiece and Cuper insists his players are ready to be tested in the UAE.

“Our team had good preparation leading up to the tournament, especially our centralised camps which included high-intensity trainings. We didn’t only focus on Oman but also the tournament as a whole and I’m satisfied with how everything went,” said Cuper.

“I’m not worried that we didn’t not play any friendlies before the tournament. I made that decision for a valid reason. Sometimes players can pick up unnecessary injuries, so I didn’t want to expose my players to that kind of risk.

Yu Dabao scored with 12 minutes remaining to give the Chinese all three points in the Group C clash after Akhlidin Israilov had put Kyrgyz Republic ahead three minutes before the break, only for an own goal from goalkeeper Pavel Matiash to allow China to pull level.

Lippi’s team showed a marked improvement in the second half having been second-best in the opening 45 minutes and the former Juventus and Italy coach was puzzled by his team’s lacklustre display in the first half.

Ahmedov took over the captaincy from Timur Kapadze in 2016 and will now lead his nation into what will be his third appearance on the continental stage after helping the Central Asians reach the semi-finals in 2011 and the last eight four years ago.

The midfielder burst onto the AFC Asian Cup scene eight years ago in Qatar when he scored a stunning 30-yard goal of the tournament contender against the hosts on his competition debut, but will start the 2019 edition with an even greater weight of expectation upon his shoulders.

The 26-year-old Al Gharafa favourite scored twice on a night when the three-time Asian champions were rarely troubled by opponents making their debut in the competition as a unified nation.

Iran’s impressive victory saw them assume pole position in Group D, a flying start that Taremi believes will stand his side in good stead going forward.

In a tournament that has already witnessed several surprise results – notably Jordan’s defeat of Australia – the Portuguese tactician was thankful that the three-time champions of Asia avoided any sort of upset at the start of their Group D campaign.

Instead, Mehdi Taremi’s brace along with goals from Ashkan Dejagah, Sardar Azmoun and Saman Ghoddos helped seal a relativy straightforward victory and a provide a perfect start to Team Melli’s 14th AFC Asian Cup campaign.

Australia struggled in front of goal as they failed to produce an equaliser against Vital Borkelmans’ Jordan at the Al Ain's Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium on Sunday.

Graham Arnold’s side now have little margin for error in their remaining two group matches and defenders Behich and Grant spoke to the-AFC.com on Australia’s chances against the Lions of Canaan.

Both the player and Syrian team confirmed the 27-year-old would play no further part in the competition, and faces a six-month stint on the sidelines after he sustained an anterior cruciate ligament tear in the first half of Sunday's goaless draw against Palestine.

Omari, who plays his club football for Doha-based Qatar Sports Club, revealed the details of his injury via social media.