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Australia vs United Arab Emirates |
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|---|---|---|
2019 Asian Cup Quarterfinal |
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| Hazza bin Zayed Stadiun, Al Ain | ||
Australia |
United Arab Emirates |
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0 |
SCORE | 1 |
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The Socceroos have been sensationally knocked out of the 2019 Asian Cup after going down bitterly 1-0 to the UAE in Al-Ain.
A terrible back-pass from Milos Degenek in the second half set up Ali Makbkhout for the only goal of the match.
Australia pushed hard for an equalizer but could not conjure the goal they craved.
History unfortunately struck again for Graham Arnold, who was in charge in 2007 when the Socceroos also crashed out of the Asian Cup at the quarter-final stage.
The defending champions missed the skill and attacking nous of Tom Rogic, who was unavailable through suspension.
To cope with the loss of Rogic, Arnold moved to a 4-4-2 formation, starting Jamie Maclaren up front with Apostolos Giannou.
The gamble paid off with the Socceroos starting strongly and moving the ball with purpose.
Robbie Kruse replaced Awer Mabil on the right flank, and the much-maligned veteran winger was effective and engaging.
The first half was a frenetic affair with both teams enjoying chances. The best came to the hosts in the 20th minute when Mat Ryan pulled off a terrific save to keep the score level, after Mark Milligan coughed up the ball in midfield.
The Socceroos had several half-chances, especially from corners, but were unable to keep their headers down.
In the second half Australia looked to have taken the lead in the 63rd minute, when sub Matthew Leckie brilliantly set up Giannou, who put the ball in the back of the net.
But Leckie was correctly ruled offside and the goal was disallowed.
Soon after came Degenek’s error which gifted the UAE the lead. The defender claimed he was fouled as he gave the ball away, but his claims were waived away by the VAR.
Arnold emptied the rest of his bench but to no avail. The Socceroos had 16 shots to just 5 from the UAE, but only three of those were on target.
The match ended in somewhat farcical scenes, with six additional minutes played along with the four minutes of injury time originally announced, as several UAE players wasted time.
While one was legitimately injured after a bad head knock, several others hit the turf to run out the clock.
Final score
Socceroos 0
United Arab Emirates 1
The Socceroos face tournament hosts the United Arab Emirates in the quarter-finals of the Asian Cup. Can they keep their defence of the trophy alive? Find out on The Roar with live scores and a blog of the match from 3am AEDT.
Australia scraped into the quarter-final after a tense penalty shoot-out win over Uzbekistan.
The Socceroos endured a tight and tense 120 minutes against the Uzbeks, but just managed to edge past on penalties.
Mat Ryan was the undisputed hero, stunningly saving two penalties to ensure Australia lived to fight another day.
While the green and gold was struggling against the Uzbeks, the UAE was also finding it tough going against Kyrgyzstan.
Tursunali Rustamov scored in the 91st minute to make it 2-2 and send the game into extra-time.
Ahmed Khalil’s penalty in the 103rd minute was enough to get the hosts to the next round and save their bacon.
But so far the Sons of Zayed have failed to fully convince in their Asian Cup.
They topped Group A but only managed one win from their three matches. The UAE were held 1-1 by both Bahrain and Thailand, but did beat India 2-0.
The Whites, who are ranked 79th in the world, are coached by wily Italian veteran Alberto Zaccheroni.
They entered the tournament without their talisman, creative force Omar Abdulrahman, because of injury.
Coming into the tournament the UAE had won just two of their past nine matches. They suffered losses to the likes of Venezeula, Trinidad and Tobago, Gabon and Slovakia in 2018.
The UAE’s biggest threats are strikers Ali Mabkhout and Khalil. The Socceroos will go into the match without the services of suspended midfielder Tom Rogic.
Prediction
Like the Socceroos, the UAE have not been at their best throughout this Asian Cup. However, Australia has a good past record against them and that should continue tonight.
Australia to win 1-0.
Join The Roar for live scores and a blog of the match from 3am AEDT.
Where: Hazza bin Zayed Stadiun, Al Ain
When: 3am AEDT
TV: Fox Sports
Betting: Australia $1.88, Draw $2.20, UAE $3.20
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