Canberra: The UAE booked a place in the quarter-finals of the Asian Cup for the first time in nearly 20 years on Thursday after their 2-1 win over Bahrain at the Canberra Stadium was followed by a 1-0 triumph for Iran against Qatar.
The results leave both UAE and Iran on six points after their first two Group C games, meaning they are through to the last-eight and next Monday’s clash between the two will decide who tops the group.
A strike after just 14 seconds by Ali Mabkhout and an own goal from Bahrain captain Mohammad Hussain saw Mahdi Ali’s side pick up their second win of the tournament in Australia, while Jaycee Okwunwanne netted in reply.
It was a deserved victory for the UAE, whose midfield star Omar Abdul Rahman again dictated play with a performance full of verve and creativity.
And, not surprisingly, the Al Ain playmaker was at the heart of the UAE’s opening goal as they began where they left off in the 4-1 victory over Qatar in their first game of the tournament last Sunday.
But, even after the dominance of that win, they surely couldn’t have dreamed of a better start to this game, as Abdul Rahman found Mabkhout with a beautiful ball and the prolific forward finished with confidence.
The 14-second strike could be the fastest in Asian Cup history. There have been two previous goals scored within a minute in the competition - China's Xie Yuxin in 1992 and Kuwait’s Fathi Kameel in 1976 - but records don’t state the exact second of those efforts.
Not content to sit on their early lead, the UAE dominated the early stages, playing in and around Bahrain’s box with some quality possession football, often revolving around Omar and Mohammad Abdul Rahman.
And it was the latter who fashioned the UAE’s next chance, showing incredible poise to control a high-ball inside the Bahrain box before cutting back to Ahmad Khalil, whose effort struck the post.
But, just as it seemed only a matter of time before the UAE increased their lead, Bahrain hit back. In a rare attack, Faouzi Aish curled a delightful corner to the back post, where giant striker Okwunwanne hung in the air to nod home powerfully.
The goal seemed to knock the UAE’s confidence and they were lucky not to fall behind moments later, when the dangerous Okwunwanne connected with a purposeful Mohammad Duaij cross, but he headed into the grateful hands of keeper Majed Nasser.
In an attempt to seize back momentum, Omar Adbul Rahman set up Khalil on 33 minutes, but his low effort was cleared off the line.
And from there until half-time — and for some time after — the game became fragmented, with neither team taking charge. While the UAE continued to enjoy the majority of the possession, the penetration that had been there at the start of the game had now clearly been blunted.
As the second half wore on, the only opportunity of note saw Omar Abdul Rahman curl a free-kick narrowly over the bar after Bahrain keeper Sayed Mohammad Abbas had picked up a back-pass.
But fortune favoured a more direct approach from the UAE as they looked to gain the upper hand, as Amer Abdul Rahman’s deep free-kick was headed into his own net by Hussain on 73 minutes. It was a shocking error from the Bahrain skipper, who would have been proud of the header had it been at the other end.
Mabkhout should have put the tie beyond doubt as the game entered the closing stages, nodding a close-range header wide from five yards.
And it took a couple of decent late stops from Nasser to ensure the win, which saw the UAE enter the last eight of the Asian Cup for the first time since 1996.
