The knockout stage of the U20 Asian Cup came in the expectation of the fans. In the first game, Iran, the favourite to win the championship, faced the challenge of Iraq. However, no one expected that the first knockout match was an upset, and the Iranian team unexpectedly overturned!
In the ranking of FIFA, Iran ranks 24th, and ranks second in Asia, second only to Japan. While Iraq ranks 68th and 7th in Asia. If we only look at the rankings, there is still a big gap between the two teams. In the group stage, the promotion process of the two teams is also very different. After defeating Vietnam in the final round, Iran advanced with its head held high at the top of the group. The Iraqi team was tied by the Syrian team, relying on the advantages of the winning and losing relationship to get through the risk.
As a traditional powerhouse in Asia, many fans are more optimistic about Iran’s promotion, but the result of the game has surprised many people. I don’t know if the game is too important. In the first half, both teams played cautiously, and the scene was always in a stalemate. No one created a good chance to score. At half-time, the two teams returned to the dressing room with a score of 0-0.
Yi Bian fought again, and the game was still very tight. Both teams made some threats, but they were always a little short of scoring. Just when everyone thought that the showdown was about to enter overtime, Iraqi midfielder Ali Jasim stood up. In the first minute of injury time, the Iraqi team launched an attack through a long pass. Jassim got the ball and took it straight to the restricted area. Before the three defenders of the Iranian team formed an encirclement, Jasim decisively kicked the door and the ball flew directly into the far corner of the goal, 1-0! Iraq took the lead in breaking the deadlock in injury time and took the lead in the score!
Because there was not much time left in the game, in the final stage, the Iranian team, which was behind the score, did not organize any decent offensive. In the end, with Jassim’s winner, Iraq beat Iran 1-0, taking the lead in the top four of this U20 Asian Cup. After the promotion, the Iraqi team also got tickets for the World Youth Championship, and they will play as one of the representatives of Asia in the World Youth Championship in Indonesia this summer!
I believe the Iraqi team’s unexpected promotion will also bring a lot of incentives to the China men’s soccer team. China’s opponent in the knockout stage is South Korea, which is the favourite to win the championship. It also takes some miracles to beat the opponent and advance. Since the Iraqi team can defeat the strong with the weak, I believe that the China team will also have the hope of counterattack!