Dubai: Skipper Saeed Al Kathiri fired a hat-trick as the UAE swamped India 5-0 in Group G to get their campaign off to a flying start in the football competition of the 2014 Incheon Asian Games on Monday.

Expectations have been high from the UAE side following their silver medal at the last Asian Games held in Guangzhou in 2010. Named the “Golden Generation” under coach Mahdi Ali, the UAE nearly went all the way till they lost 1-0 to Japan in the final.

It was just the kind of start that coach Ali Ebrahim was looking for and Al Kathiri — one of the two over-age players in the under-23 squad — who ensured the UAE took a firm step towards the knockout stages.

The UAE assault was so swift that the match was sealed off in a matter of seven minutes and it was Al Kathiri who was at the heart of the action with two goals within three minutes. The striker from Al Wahda opened the scoring on the 13th minute and quickly added a second barely two minutes later to put the UAE in the driver’s seat. In the 19th minute, Bandar Al Hababi ensured the UAE went in for the half-time break with a healthy 3-0 scoreline after an easy tap-in from close.

Pushed against the wall, India were off to a sluggish start in the second half as well. Barring the odd counterattack from Robin Singh and skipper Sunil Chhetri, India could do nothing to put their stamp on the match and stage a comeback. Chhetri, one of three senior players in the Indian side, managed to get two shots on goal but young Al Nasr goalkeeper Ahmad Shambei Al Beloushi was equal to the task.

As the match slackened in pace, Al Kathiri managed to complete his hat-trick when he slotted past Amrinder Singh on the Indian goal in the 64th minute to make it 4-0 and literally end the contest. India conceded a fifth one when defender Sandesh Jhingan deflected a cross into his own goal with eight minutes of play still remaining.

Jordan is the third team in Group G. The UAE next play Jordan on September 18, while India will be up against Jordan on the final day of preliminary matches on September 22. Only the top two teams from each of the eight groups will advance to the knockout stages.

North Korea, meanwhile, took China apart 3-0 in their first game with goals from Sim Hyon-Jin, So Kyong-Jin and Ri Hyok-Chol making it an easy debut outing for them.

Fans waving the blue and white Korean Unification Flag, and others with the North Korean colours, stood and applauded what was a straightforward group win at Incheon Football Stadium.

The North Koreans were frequently allowed to run at China and they quickly went ahead when Sim arrowed a shot past goalkeeper Fang Jingqi after only 10 minutes. So Hyon-Uk’s close-range shot deflected off Fang and on to the crossbar, and Sim ran into the box but fired over as North Korea enjoyed a commanding first half.

— With inputs from agencies