16 Asian national teams are currently playing the AFC U19 Championship at Bahrain (October 13-October 30). During the Matchday 3, Japan and Iran secured quarter-finals spots.
Group A : Saudi Arabia 6 pts, Bahrain 6 pts, South Korea 6 pts, Thailand 0 pts
The South Koreans faced a nightmare scenario : they were atop of the group before this Matchday 3 and they are finally eliminated as they were beaten by Saudi Arabia (1-2). Meanwhile, Bahrain earned a crucial 3-2 win over Thailand to ensure a second place finish.
Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and South Korea finished with six points but South Korea are eliminated due to their inferior goal difference in their head-to-head against Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
Group B : Iraq 7 pts, Vietnam 5 pts, United Arab Emirates 4 pts, North Korea 0 pt
Already qualified, Irak shared the spoils with Vietnam (0-0). With this draw, Vietnam advance to the quarter-finals as they only needed one point to reach the knockout phase. In the other game, North Korea took an early lead but they were beaten by United Arab Emirates (1-3). However, the competition is over for both nations.
Group C : Japan 7 pts, Iran 5 pts, Qatar 4 pts, Yémen 0 pt
Goals from Yuto Iwasaki, Koji Miyoshi and Takehiro Tomiyasu secured for Japan a 3-0 win over Qatar as well as a qualification for the next round. Meanwhile, Iran earned their first win since the start of the tournament against Yemen (1-0) thanks to an Abolfazl Razzaghpourn’s wonderful free-kick. Enough to reach the quarter-finals !
Group D : Uzbekistan 7 pts, Tajikistan 4 pts, Australia 4 pts, China 0 pt
After winning their first two games, Uzbekistan earned a 0-0 draw against China to keep themselves at the top of the group. In the other game, Tajikistan and Australia share the spoils too (0-0). This draw is enough for Tajikistan to progress at the expense of Australia on goal difference (+1 against 0).
REMINDER : the top four teams of the final tournament will qualify for the 2017 FIFA U20 World Cup
Amayes Brahmi - Follow @AmayesB
Credits Photo : The AFC