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Iran routs Bahrain, Syria beats Maldives |
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April 11, 2000 TEHRAN, APR 10 (AP) - Three-time Asian Cup champion Iran overcame Bahrain 3-0 Sunday with spectacular second-half goals in the second leg of Asian Cup group 2 qualifiers. In another Group 2 match, Syria beat Maldives 2-1, a respectable result for the weak Indian Ocean island team thanks to spectacular saves from its goalkeeper, Omran Mohammad. Despite dominating the first half, Iran's failure to produce any goals disappointed about 40,000 fans who turned up at Tehran's Azadi Stadium braving a heavy downpour. Iran's first goal came in the 61st minute with Hamburg midfielder Mahdi Mahdavikia crossing a ball from right and Mahmoud Fekri's header finding the net. Ali Karimi scored the second goal when Bahrain keeper Abdel-Aziz Issa failed to completely save Alireza Emamifar's shot from close range. After missing several chances, Ali Daei, who was named Asian Player of the Year on Thursday, closed the scoring with a long header in the 81st minute. Late unprotected offensives by Bahrain in injury time were insufficient to create trouble for Iranian defenders. Iran opened the match with classic offensives on the right with Rapid Vienna striker Farhad Majidi's crosses to Daei. Iran had a good chance to score in the 25th minute after Karim Baqeri crossed the ball to Majidi, whose spectacular header was denied by the Bahraini keeper. Daei missed another chance a minute later when his header was returned from Bahrain's defense. The match was marked by dangerous tackles from Bahraini defenders, who were booked several times by Japanese referee Tomo Kamikawa. Bahraini midfielder, Khaled Abdullah, was sent off for a second offense during first-half injury time. Bahrain coach Salman Ahmad, afraid of losing more players on the pitch, substituted his captain after getting a yellow card. In the Syria-Maldives match, Khaled Zaher put Syria ahead in the 10th minute. Syria found the net again in the 33rd minute, but Maldives showed improvement in the second half, thwarting several Syrian attacks. Maldives scored their only goal in the 92nd minute during injury time. |