JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia crashed out of the AFC Youth Championship when they went down fighting to the UAE in the quarterfinal by a solitary goal in Dammam yesterday.
The hosts did everything but failed to score against a strong UAE defense.
The only goal of match was scored in the 63rd minute when unmarked Deyab Awana received a through ball and in a flash outpaced the rival defense and placed the ball to the far right of the goalkeeper. Saudi Arabia went all out in search for the equalizer but all of their attempts came to naught when they found the rival defense a hard nut to crack. It was time for celebration for the UAE supporters as their team not only qualified for the semis but also made it to the Youth World Cup to be held in Egypt. For the Saudi team, it was just another disappointment.
In the other quarterfinal matches of the day, South Korea surprised Japan crushing them 3-0 while Uzbekistan beat China 5-3 in the tie-breaker after regulation time ended 0-0. Australia defeated North Korea 2-1 in the last match of the day.
Saudi Arabia had some consolation when the national team beat Thailand 1-0 in a friendly. Kingdom will take on neighbors Bahrain in another friendly next Wednesday in preparation for their upcoming match against South Korea.
