Thailand and Congo draw 1-1 in warm-up
>> TOKYO: Asia’s guns flexed their muscles with massive wins in the qualifying round for the 2022 World Cup on Thursday.
In Tehran, Karim Ansarifard scored four goals, while Sardar Azmoun netted three as Iran breezed past minnows Cambodia 14-0.
Mehdi Taremi and Mohammad Mohebi recorded a brace each, while Morteza Pouraliganji, Mohammad Kanani and Ahmad Nourollahi helped themselves with a goal each.
“I had said we would play attacking football against Cambodia and I am glad that the team did just that,” said Iran coach Marc Wilmots.
“We’re still in a transitional phase as new players have been added to the team.”
The Belgian took over from Carlos Quieroz as Iran coach following the AFC Asian Cup in January.
The UAE, who are in Group G with Thailand, defeated Indonesia 5-0 while Vietnam edged Malaysia 1-0 in the same pool.
At Dubai, the UAE’s Ali Mabkhout entered the history books with a hat-trick.
Mabkhout is now his country’s all-time top scorer with 53 goals, overtaking Adnan Al Talyani’s previous record of 52.
Bert van Marwijk’s men next face Thailand in Bangkok on Tuesday.
Veteran striker Yang Xu scored four goals in 25 minutes during China’s 7-0 blitz of Guam while Australia easily defeated Nepal 5-0.
China led 6-0 at half-time but struggled to keep up the pressure and would have gone scoreless in the second half without a sudden strike by Brazil-born Elkeson, who in August became the first player without Chinese heritage to be named in the national squad.
“Our goal is to advance to the final 12 [of Asia’s World Cup qualifiers] and it has been since the first game,” said China coach Marcello Lippi.
“We were very dedicated, defensively compact and we took up a lot of offensive positions. The players performed well and, even though our opponents weren’t very strong, they still played well.
“What needs to be improved sometimes is the quality of the final ball.”
At Canberra, Jamie Maclaren scored a hat-trick for the Socceroos.
“We created a lot of chances and got a bit more ruthless when it counted,” said Australia coach Graham Arnold after his side’s biggest home win in three years.
In Dhaka Yusuf Abdurisag and Karim Boudiaf were on target in each half as 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar edged Bangladesh, while Oman eased past Afghanistan 3-0 in Seeb with Abdul Aziaz alMuqabli grabbing a double.
Striker Kim Shin-Wook scored four goals in South Korea’s 8-0 drubbing of Sri Lanka.
Saudi Arabia defeated Singapore 3-0, Uzbekistan drubbed Yemen 5-0 and Iraq prevailed over Hong Kong 2-0.
At Saitama, Yuto Nagatomo revelled in scoring his first goal in a decade as Japan strolled to a 6-0 win over Mongolia. AGENCIES