BEIJING, 26 July 2004 — Hosts China and Gulf minnows Bahrain booked their places in the Asian Cup quarterfinals here yesterday as more violence erupted on the same day three Iranian players were hit by hefty suspensions.
China defeated Qatar 1-0 thanks to a late goal from defender Xu Yunlong in front of 62,000 fans at Beijing’s Workers Stadium to clinch Group A, while ten-man Bahrain downed Indonesia 3-1 to finish runners-up.
Bahrain’s match finished amid controversy, with defender Sayed Mohamed sent off in the closing stages for poleaxing Indonesia’s Ponaryo Astaman with a stiff arm blow to the jaw.
China, who will play the second-placed team in Group C in the quarterfinals on Friday, made hard work of breaking down Qatar, who exited after a miserable campaign that saw them sack coach Philippe Troussier after one match.
Xu sealed victory on 78 minutes, the tall defender stooping to head in from close-range after skipper Li Weifeng had knocked down a perfectly weighted inswinging corner from midfielder Li Ming.
Manchester City’s Sun Jihai, who came on as a second-half substitute, could have doubled China’s lead in the closing stages only to see his header crash against the woodwork.
China coach Arie Haan will be concerned though at his team’s lack of a cutting edge up front, with veteran goalscorer Hao Haidong missing the game through injury and doubtful for the rest of the tournament.
Despite dominating much of the match China struggled to turn their wealth of possession into chances. All too often the final pass let the hosts down, with crosses frequently over-hit or misdirected.
In Jinan, Bahrain reached the quarterfinals for the first time in their history with their victory over Indonesia, who had needed only a draw to progress.
But controversy flared after substitute Elie Aboy pulled one back for Indonesia on 76 minutes with the score at 2-0.
Mohamed appeared to punch Ponaryo as the Indonesian midfielder, eager for a quick restart, wrestled for the ball.
However, Talal Yusuf put the game beyond doubt just five minutes later with a superbly taken free kick which rocketed into the top left of the Indonesian goal past ‘keeper Hendro Kartiko.
Striker Husain Ali had put the Middle Eastern side ahead just before half-time, side-footing Yusuf’s cut-back past Kartiko.
The second was a classic counterattack as Indonesia pushed forward for an opening. A’ala Hubail was on hand to fire in a cross from his brother Mohamed after Indonesian defender Warsidi Ardi fluffed his interception.
Off the pitch yesterday, Iran saw their hopes of winning a fourth Asian Cup suffer a devastating blow with one player banned for the rest of the tournament and two others receiving two-match suspensions.
The disciplinary action came after the Iranians’ drew 2-2 with Oman in a stormy Group D battle on Saturday.
Tournament officials slapped a four-match ban on Iran’s goal hero Mohammed Nosrati for stamping on an Oman player, and suspended defenders Rahman Rezaei and Ali Badavi for slapping each other in an extraordinary bust-up. Bahraini referee Abdul Rahman will also play no further part in the tournament after an erratic display of officiating that Oman’s players believe cost them a famous victory.
Today will see the final round of games in Group C, with Saudi Arabia playing regional rivals Iraq and Uzbekistan meeting Central Asian neighbors Turkmenistan.
