Abu Dhabi: Ahmad Khalil's injury-time strike propelled the UAE into the 2011 Asian Cup finals in Qatar after defeating Malaysia 1-0 at Maktoum Stadium in Al Shabab Club, Dubai on Wednesday night.
The UAE, who trounced Malaysia 5-0 in the first leg last year in Kuala Lumpur, failed to breakthrough the solid Malaysian defence. They also committed several errors while finishing their attacking moves despite taking complete command of the match.
The result increased the UAE's tally to six points from three matches. They will face group leaders Uzbekistan away on March 3 in an inconsequential match as both teams have already earned promotion to the finals.
Earlier, China and Iran qualified for the finals, but Indonesia and Vietnam crashed out of contention. They will be joined by Syria, along with the hosts Qatar, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and South Korea, the top three in the 2007 tournament. India are also through as the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup winners.
Perennial underachievers China secured their berth with a hard-fought goalless draw in Zhejiang against Syria in Group D.
However, there were tears for Indonesia, who slumped out of the running with a 2-1 defeat to Oman in Jakarta.
The victory put the Omanis level on seven points at the top of Group B alongside Australia and Kuwait, who were playing each other.
