After a slow start that saw two goalless draws in the three opening matchday fixtures, Group A of the 2022 FIFA World Cup Asian Qualifiers came to life on Tuesday with six goals, three fiercely contested games and plenty of talking points.
Iran were the biggest winners, both in terms of scoreline and in finishing the first batch of games as group leaders with a perfect mark. South Korea recovered from an initial setback against Iraq to beat Lebanon, albeit narrowly, while the UAE and Syria shared the points in Amman.
Here are five talking points from the action.
1. Crossroads for the UAE
When the UAE beat Vietnam 3-2 on the final matchday of the second round of the Asian Qualifiers, there was a genuine sense of optimism that was only boosted after the third-round draw handed them what was considered a favorable draw and a gradual start to the fixtures, with Lebanon and Syria being their first two opponents.
Fast forward to two matchdays into Group A and it all turned sour for the Whites as they collected just two points from a possible tally of six, drawing 0-0 at home to Lebanon then 1-1 away against Syria.
They might still be sitting third in the group, but with clashes against South Korea, Iran and Iraq to come, this will feel every bit like a wasted chance to establish an early lead for Bert van Marwijk’s men, and crucially it has left the UAE at a crossroads with the Dutchman’s future at the helm set to be decided over the next few days.
2. Skokic resumes Iran’s defensive heritage
Four years ago, Iran cruised to the World Cup as leaders of Group A, finishing seven points clear off South Korea, unbeaten and with only two goals conceded over the course of 10 matches.
In the finals at Russia 2018, the team conceded just two goals, the least for any side that exited at the group stage, despite facing European powerhouses Spain and Portugal.
A year later, Team Melli kept five consecutive clean sheets en route to reaching the AFC Asian Cup semi-final in the UAE, before a spectacular self-inflicted collapse in a 3-0 defeat to Japan.
A solid defense has always been one of the hallmarks of coach Carlos Queiroz’s eight-year era, and after the struggles of Marc Wilmots’ short spell in charge, Croatian boss Dragan Skocic seems to have returned to the roots, with his Iran side keeping back-to-back clean sheets to assume an early lead at the top of Group A with six points.
It might be early days, but the writing is in the wall for the Iranians and a place in Qatar 2022 could well be on the cards should these solid defensive displays continue.
3. Race wide open for third spot
Group A of the 2022 FIFA World Cup Asian Qualifiers carries more than a passing resemblance to its predecessor in 2018, when Iran won the top spot comfortably, South Korea followed and Syria took the play-off ticket and impressed against Australia before an eventual heartbreak in Sydney.
This time out, the two World Cup perennials are already occupying the same top two spots with Iran on six points and South Korea on four, but beyond that it looks to be anyone’s guess as to who could finish third and advance to the play-off round.
At the moment, it is the UAE that holds third place with two points, but just a point behind are all of Syria, Lebanon and Iraq. All of whom will point to the advantage of having already traveled to at least one of Iran or South Korea, perceived to be the group’s most difficult grounds, unlike the UAE, who will see their two points as four points dropped.
4. Syria struggling to replace Al-Somah
“I would like to congratulate the UAE on the draw,” said a frustrated Nizar Mahrous in the aftermath of the 1-1 draw in Amman on Tuesday. The veteran tactician will have rightfully felt aggravated by his side’s failure to walk away with the three points in a game where they had the lion’s share of scoring chances.
With star man Omar Al-Somah out injured, it was his namesake Omar Kharbin who assumed striker duty at King Abdullah II Stadium, and the Al-Wahda forward had a night to forget, scuffing chance after chance as the UAE defense creaked under the weight of Syrian attacks. So wasteful was the 2017 Asian Player of the Year that he had to come out and issue an apology after the game, taking personal responsibility for the result.
Eventually it took a defensive error from Shahin Abdulrahman and a well-taken strike by substitute Mahmoud Al-Baher to cancel out Ali Mabkhout’s opening goal for the UAE.
5. Case for Mabkhout as UAE’s finest of all time
When the UAE reached the 2015 AFC Asian Cup semi-final in Australia, it was Ali Mabkhout who finished as the tournament’s top scorer with five goals, including the fastest goal in the competition’s history.
When they tragically crashed out of the 2019 edition on home soil against Qatar, it was also Mabkhout who was their top scorer with four, and in the ongoing Asian Qualifiers, it is none other than Mabkhout who leads the overall scorers charts with 12 goals.
His latest against Syria was his 77th for the national team, a tally that helped him edge out a certain Leo Messi as the second highest active international scorer behind Cristiano Ronaldo, and also meant that Mabkhout is now level with Pele as the seventh-highest scorer in the history of international football.
Perhaps it is time that the 30 year old is now spoken about with the same appreciation reserved for the likes of Adnan Al-Talyani, Zuhair Bakhit or Omar Abdulrahman, as he proves once more that he is one of the best players to have ever worn the White shirt.
