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The AFC.comGp A: Lebanon through, Uzbeks unbeatenTuesday, 25 May 2010Tashkent: Lebanon twice battled back from a goal down to beat Indonesia 4-2 at IT University Sports Complex on Tuesday and snatch a place in the last eight of the AFC Futsal Championship 2010.
After losing their opening game of the tournament to Uzbekistan on Sunday, the West Asians have steadily improved and two successive victories means they take second in Group A and join the tournament hosts in the quarter-finals.
Sayan Karmadi put Indonesia ahead in the 14th minute before Khaled Takaji, a stand-out performer for Pro's Cafe at the AFC Futsal Club Championship in March, equalised in the 18th minute.
Ali Haidar's 20th minute strike restored the lead for Robby Hartono's side but a quick-fire double from Kassem Kawsan and another goal from Takaji in the 30th minute secured the points for Lebanon.
Uzbekistan, meanwhile, maintained their unbeaten run at the tournament as they left it late to defeat Chinese Taipei 4-1 at Uzbekistan Sports Complex.
The win means they finish top of Group A with nine points having won all three games so far.
Nodir Elivaev got the ball rolling for the Uzbeks in the seventh minute but from then on they struggled to find a way through their opponent's defence and Chinese Taipei instead stunned the hosts when Lu Chih An levelled a minute into the second half.
But Hurshid Tajibaev put the Uzbeks ahead in the 33rd minute before a late double from Artur Yunusov sealed the victory.
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The AFC.comGp B: Champs cruise, fight for FutsalroosTuesday, 25 May 2010Tashkent: Iran became the first side at the AFC Futsal Championship 2010 to keep a clean sheet as the defending champions eased to a 7-0 victory over Kuwait at Uzbekistan Sports Complex on Tuesday.
Hossein Shams' free-scoring side are the top scorers in the tournament having found the net on 35 occasions in their three games so far to cement first place in Group B and set-up a quarter-final clash with Lebanon on Thursday.
Iran went ahead in the sixth minute through Masoud Daneshvar before adding a second three minutes later when Mohammad Hashemzadeh struck.
But once again it was a strong second-half performance that sealed the victory as Mostafa Tayyebi scored twice before Mohammadreza Zahmatkesh made it 5-0 and Mohammad Taheri wrapped up the win with a late double.
Australia join Iran in the quarter-finals after they edged a tense encounter with Tajikistan 5-4 at IT University Complex.
Both sides were playing for a place in the last eight and it looked like it was to be Tajikistan's day as they raced to a two-goal lead after eight minutes with strikes from Khurshed Makhmudov and Sherzod Jumaev.
Australia pulled one back through James Giovenali before Ray Miller equalised in the 20th minute.
Sherzod restored the lead for Tajikistan two minutes into the second half but Petar Rogic immediately equalised and Miller then put the Australians ahead.
But Steven Knight's side had Simon Keith sent off after 30 minutes and Sherzod completed his hat-trick as Tajikistan drew level with 10 minutes remaining.
However, Rogic scored again with four minutes remaining to secure the win and set-up a quarter-final clash for the Futsalroos against hosts Uzbekistan.
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The AFC.comGp C: Kyrgyz do enough, hat-trick for ThaisTuesday, 25 May 2010Tashkent: Kyrgyzstan got the point they needed to seal a place in the quarter-finals of the AFC Futsal Championship on Tuesday with a 4-4 draw with Korea Republic at IT University Complex.
With Group C winners Thailand defeating Vietnam in the group's other game, Kyrgyzstan needed only to avoid defeat and they did just that to set up a match with Japan in the last eight on Thursday.
Dilshat Kadyrov put Kyrgyzstan ahead in the first minute and though Jeong Eui-hyun levelled just two minutes later, Gulbek Abdurazakov regained the lead for Amirzhan Mukanov's side in the 12th minute.
The Koreans once again fought back nine minutes into the second half when Seok Dae-sung found the back of the net but Kyrgyzstan responded a minute later through Azamat Mendibaev.
Jeong again pulled Korea Republic level in the 33rd minute and though Mendibaev thought he had secured all three points for Kyrgyzstan with a goal in the 39th minute, Jeong fired home at the death to complete his hat-trick and claim a first point of the tournament for his side.
Meanwhile, already qualified Thailand made it three wins from three with a 5-2 victory over South East Asia rivals Vietnam at Uzbekistan Sports Complex.
Suphawut Thueanklang opened the scoring in the third minute before Nguyen Quoc Bao equalised after nine minutes.
Suphawut scored again two minutes later before goals from Na-tee Thusiri and Lertchai Issarasuwipakorn and a Trong Quoc Tuan own goal put further daylight between the two sides.
Quoc Tuan made amends for his earlier error to reduce the deficit with five minutes remaining but it was not enough to deny victory for Thailand.
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The AFC.comGp D: China edge Iraq, Turkmen test JapanTuesday, 25 May 2010Tashkent: Zhang Xi scored a hat-trick as China fended off a late fight-back from Iraq to book their passage to the quarter-finals of the AFC Futsal Championship 2010 with a narrow 7-6 win at IT University Complex on Tuesday.
Zhang Xi opened the scoring in the third minute before Zhang Jiong made it 2-0 seven minutes later.
China added a third two minutes into the second half through Zhang Xi and though Mohammed Al Thabeti pulled one back for Iraq in the 23rd minute, goals from Li Xin and Zhang put China in a commanding position.
The goals continued to come as Mustafa Hamza and Hu Jie scored in the 32nd minute before the latter made it 7-2 soon after.
And a determined Iraq almost completed a remarkable comeback as they scored four goals in the final six minutes, but China did enough to defend their slender lead and secure the win.
The three points mean China finish second in Group D and will play Thailand for a place in the semi-final of the tournament on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Japan rounded off their group campaign with a narrow 1-0 win over Turkmenistan at Uzbekistan Sports Complex on Tuesday.
The East Asians had already cemented their place in the quarter-finals but ensured they head into Thursday's match with Kyrgyzstan in confident mood after winning all three games in the tournament so far.
The only goal of a surprisingly close-fought affair came in the 11th minute when Takanori Kamisawa fired home.
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The AFC.comGp A: Time to start dominating says SapoTuesday, 25 May 2010Tashkent: Uzbekistan coach Sergio Sapo believes his side are giving their opponents too much respect and is determined to develop a ruthless streak in his players before their AFC Futsal Championship 2010 quarter-final match with Australia on Thursday.
The hosts defeated Chinese Taipei 4-1 on Tuesday to finish top of Group A with nine points and although they have won all three games so far, they have yet to really dominate an opponent.
“Chinese Taipei looked very good today,” said Sapo.
“But then this is sometimes our own fault because we allowed our opponents to play well.
“We now have a break before the next game so we will now take a look at everything.”
Chinese Taipei coach Chen Kuei-jen declared himself proud of his players for more than holding their own against their opponents for much of the game.
“The first thing I would like to do is congratulate the Uzbekistan team for a successful group stage performance,” he said.
“I would personally like to wish the team success in the coming matches against tough opponents.
“As for today's game, I am proud of my players as they caused our opponents a lot of trouble.”
Lebanon will keep fighting vows Zakhour
Uzbekistan are joined in the last eight by Lebanon following their crucial 4-2 win over Indonesia, ending the latter's AFC Futsal Championship campaign.
"First of all, I want to wish good luck to the Indonesia team, they are a good side,” said Lebanon coach Dory Zakhour.
“Their futsal is growing year by year.”
Lebanon have arguably the toughest game in the quarter-finals as they will play defending champions and nine-time winners Iran.
“We understand that it will not be easy but we will fight. We fight to the end.”
Indonesia coach Robby Hartono was disappointed his side could not reach the knockout stage but felt his side had done all they could.
"I thank God for the opportunity to play at this tournament,” he said.
“Our goal was to reach the quarter-finals, and we have done everything possible for this, but it was not enough.
“I think in this match we just lacked luck, but we still have everything ahead of us.”
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The AFC.comGp C: Close call unsettles MukanovTuesday, 25 May 2010Tashkent: Kyrgyzstan coach Amirzhan Mukanov was not satisfied with the performance of his players in the 4-4 draw with Korea Republic at IT University Complex on Tuesday, despite the result being enough to send them through to quarter-finals of the AFC Futsal Championship 2010.
The Central Asians had gone into the game vying with Vietnam for second place in Group C but the latter's defeat to group winners Thailand meant a place in the last eight was Kyrgyzstan's for the taking.
In the end they got the result they needed but Mukanov admitted the match was a little too close for his liking.
“The game turned out a very good one for the fans but we could not wait for it to end,” he said.
“Five minutes before the end we realised there was a chance we would not get our goal and so we concentrated on attack and prevented space for our opponents.”
Kyrgyzstan will play Japan in the quarter-finals and Mukanov knows his side will have to be at their best to beat the East Asians.
“We will play Japan, who I think are the best team in the tournament in terms of organisation.”
Korea Republic coach Lee Chang-hwan drew upon the positives to come from the tournament as they finished bottom of the group with just one point from three games.
"First of all, I would like to thank the organising committee and the AFC for this tournament,” he said.
"I am satisfied with a draw. We did not have any goals for this tournament as we have a young team, which has now gained experience. We plan to perform well at the next tournament.”
Surprise for Thais as Mendez slams squadMeanwhile, Thailand coach Jose Mendez warned his side to cut out making simple mistakes or else they will struggle to progress beyond the quarter-final stage.
The Thais beat South East Asia rivals Vietnam 5-2 at Uzbekistan Sports Complex as they finished top of Group C with three wins from three.
"We had a very bad game and I'm ashamed of it,” said Mendez.
“The only positive aspect of today's game is only that we are in the next round.
“We need to seriously think that before the next match and make sure we do not repeat the mistakes that we made.”
Vietnam coach Sergio Gargelli praised the effort of his players despite the defeat ending their campaign.
“A win over Thailand was almost impossible,” he said.
“We fought hard and the win over Korea Republic had kept alive our hopes to the last game. Therefore we have not failed in the tournament as a whole.”
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The AFC.comGp B: Iran showed true form says ShamsTuesday, 25 May 2010Tashkent: Iran coach Hossein Shams feels the defending champions have finally shown the form they are capable of at the AFC Futsal Championship 2010 following a comfortable 7-0 win over Kuwait at Uzbekistan Sports Complex on Tuesday.
Shams had struggled to find many positives from Iran's performances in their previous two Group B games despite the tournament favourites having won both matches.
But he was all smiles after Iran eased past Kuwait and believes there is more to come ahead of their quarter-final match with Lebanon on Thursday.
"Today we played spectacular football in which there were many accurate passes and very few mistakes,” said Shams.
“But I do not think that this is our limit. We can expect more. But in this game I am completely satisfied with my players.”
Kuwait coach Eisa Saadoun felt there was little more his side could have done against the team he believes is the best in the continent.
"We fought the strongest team in Asia and therefore the result does not bother me,” he said.
“We had chosen the right tactics and did not suffer a heavy defeat to them like Tajikistan did.”
Futsalroos’ find first targetCoach Steven Knight hailed his young squad as Australia achieved their minimum goal of reaching the last eight of the tournament following a hard-fought 5-4 win over Tajikistan at IT University Sports Complex.
"We have a team of several experienced players but the rest of the team are all young,” he said.
“They are from 17 to 20 years old, and the experience they have got in this tournament is the best way for them to progress.”
Australia will have their work cut out if they are to extend their run to the semi-finals as they take on hosts Uzbekistan on Thursday.
“Our goal was to reach the quarter-finals and we have achieved that,” added Knight.
“Playing the hosts is never easy but we will fight the best we can.”
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The AFC.comGp D: China coach demands concentrationTuesday, 25 May 2010Tashkent: Coach Guilherme Da Silveira warned his players he will not tolerate lapses in concentration again as China survived a late fight-back from Iraq to progress to the quarter-finals of the AFC Futsal Championship 2010 with a 7-6 victory at IT University Complex.
China were leading 7-2 with six minutes remaining and seemingly cruising through to the knock-out stage but suddenly allowed Iraq, who needed to win to snatch second place in Group D, to run riot as they quickly battled to within one goal of their opponents.
However, Iraq just ran out of time to hand China second place behind Japan, meaning they will play Thailand in the last eight on Thursday.
"We played well except for the last three minutes,” said Da Silveira.
“My players were too relaxed once they had built a big lead. I already told them in the changing rooms that this does not happen again.
“Now, I hope, we will win against Thailand.”
Iraq coach Asaad Al Hamadani felt the result was cruel on his side.
"Yes, we lost today, but we did not deserve defeat,” he said.
“We looked better than our rivals and had more opportunities to score.”
Despite the fact his side now head home empty handed, Al Hamadani believes his players are getting better with every tournament.
“Our team is composed entirely of amateurs but we showed progress compared to 2008 and that pleases me,” he added.
Rodrigo: Turkmen made it toughMeanwhile, Japan coach Miguel Rodrigo was left frustrated as his side struggled to break down Turkmenistan with Takanori Kamiyama's 11th minute goal settling the encounter in favour of the East Asians.
"Throughout nearly the entire match our rival played their goalkeeper as an outfield player and we had to defend for a long time,” said Rodrigo.
"The audience did not see a beautiful game. Playing four players against five is incredibly difficult.”
The Japanese were already through to the quarter-finals having won their first two group games to take first place and will play Kyrgyzstan on Thursday.
Turkmenistan coach Victor Kurochkin believes there was little more his side could have done to have secured victory against Japan and bemoaned a lack of luck throughout the tournament.
“Today we really wanted to beat our opponent. I think that we were worthy, but in this tournament luck was not on our side," he said.
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