Saturday, July 30, 2011

UEFA Qualifying Draw

The most anticipated part of the draw was the European portion. The most FIFA World Cup championships are held by European squads, who took the lead 10-9 over South America with Spain's victory at South Africa 2010. Before the draw, all the talk was of how the pots were playing out after the FIFA rankings were released on 27 July 2011. Big news included France slipping to Pot 2 and Wales slipping below the Faroe Islands into Pot 6.

The fifty-three teams taking part in the draw were split into nine groups. The first eight groups had six teams and Group I had five teams. Each team will play every other team in their group home and away. The teams in the first eight groups will play a total of ten matches. The teams in Group I will play eight matches. The winner of each group will advance directly to the 2014 FIFA World Cup finals in Brasil. The eight best second-place teams will advance to the UEFA playoffs.

The top seed in each group is listed first, followed by the second seed, the third seed, the fourth seed, the fifth seed, and the sixth seed (except in Group I, who only have five teams. The easiest way to fix this imbalance would be for FIFA to admit Kosovo, but I am obviously not in charge here).

Group A
Croatia
Serbia
Belgium
Scotland
Macedonia
Wales

Group B
Italy
Denmark
Czech Republic
Bulgaria
Armenia
Malta

Group C
Germany
Sweden
Ireland
Austria
Faroe Islands
Kazakhstan

Group D
Netherlands
Turkey
Hungary
Romania
Estonia
Andorra

Group E
Norway
Slovenia
Switzerland
Albania
Cyprus
Iceland

Group F
Portugal
Russia
Israel
Northern Ireland
Azerbaijan
Luxembourg

Group G
Greece
Slovakia
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Lithuania
Latvia
Liechtenstein

Group H
England
Montenegro
Ukraine
Poland
Moldova
San Marino

Group I
Spain
France
Belarus
Georgia
Finland

Because UEFA qualifying does not begin until after Euro 2012, I will refrain from making an in-depth analysis until after that tournament takes place. However, I will list my early predictions.
First place:
Croatia, Italy, Germany, Netherlands, Switzerland, Portugal, Slovakia, England, Spain
Second place:
Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, Turkey, Slovenia, Russia, Greece, Montenegro, France

Links
Overview of draw:
Group A breakdown:
Group B breakdown:
Group C breakdown:
Group D breakdown:
Group E breakdown:
Group F breakdown:
Group G breakdown:
Ukraine's coach reacts to draw:
Group H breakdown:
Spain's coach reacts to draw:
Group I breakdown:
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Oceania Round Two Draw

Oceania members finds themselves in an odd position. No draw was needed for their first round because the bottom four seeds (American Samoa, Cook Islands, Samoa, Tonga) are automatically playing in a four team group. Each of the teams participating in the first round group will play each of the other three teams in the group once at a central location. The winner of the group advances to the OFC Second Round.

The OFC Second Round doubles as the group stage for the 2012 OFC Nations Cup in June 2012. The eight remaining teams were drawn into two groups of four teams. Each team will play each of the other three teams in their group once at a central location, in this case Fiji. The top two teams in each group will advance to the OFC Third Round, as well as to the semifinals of the 2012 OFC Nations Cup.

Group A
Vanuatu
New Caledonia
Round One Winner
Tahiti

Group B
Fiji
New Zealand
Solomon Islands
Papua New Guinea

I foresee Samoa winning the OFC First Round group.

My bold predictions for Oceania are that the following teams will advance to the OFC Third Round:
New Caledonia, Vanuatu, New Zealand, Fiji

The draw gods gave Oceania an imbalanced draw. Group A includes only one of the four powers of Oceania: New Caledonia. The other three (New Zealand, Fiji, and Solomon Islands) were all grouped together in Group B. Vanuatu were given a reprieve by this draw as they were in the 2007 South Pacific Games when in the third-place match they played a Solomon Islands team depleted by two red cards from their semifinal. Vanuatu then finished fourth place in the final round of 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying. However, Tahiti will provide a challenge for Vanuatu's second place.

Group B involves heavy favorites New Zealand. The big matchup is between Fiji and Solomon Islands. Solomon Islands made it to the final playoff with Australia in the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifiers and won its first round group over Vanuatu in the 2007 South Pacific Games, but they wound up missing the final round of 2010 qualifying. Fiji, however, boasts a finals appearance in those same South Pacific Games, and a victory over New Zealand in the final round of 2010 qualifying. Fiji has the home field advantage in the OFC Second Round, so they should sneak by the Solomon Islands and into second place in Group B. However, teams should be wary of wildcards Papua New Guinea. PNG's top club team Hekari United made it to the 2010 FIFA Club World Cup and featured PNG's star forward Kema Jack.

Links
OFC qualifying overview:
Group A breakdown:
Group B breakdown:
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CONCACAF Round Three Draw

The six top seeds in CONCACAF join the party for round three, along with the six group winners from round two. The twelve teams were split into three groups of four teams each. Each team will play the other three teams in their group home and away for a total of six minutes. The top two teams in each group advance to the final round of CONCACAF qualifying, the glorious hexagonal.

The top seed in each group is listed first, followed by the second seed, the third seed, and the fourth seed. These matches are scheduled to take place between June 2012 and October 2012.

Group 1
United States of America
Jamaica
Winner of Group E
Winner of Group F

Group 2
Mexico
Costa Rica
Winner of Group A
Winner of Group B

Group 3
Honduras
Cuba
Winner of Group D
Winner of Group C

My super early predictions for this round are that the following teams will advance to the glorious hexagonal:
United States, Jamaica, Mexico, Costa Rica, Honduras, Winner of Group C (Panama)

U.S. Perspective on draw results.
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CONCACAF Round Two Draw

The five survivors from the first round of qualifying join nineteen other CONCACAF members in the first of three group stages in CONCACAF qualifying. These twenty-four teams were drawn into six groups of four teams. Each team will play the other three teams in their group home and away for a total of six matches. Only the winners of each group advance to the third round, where they will join the top six seeds.

The top seed in each group is listed first, followed by the second seed, the third seed, and the fourth seed.

Group A
El Salvador
Suriname
Cayman Islands
Dominican Republic

Group B
Trinidad and Tobago
Guyana
Barbados
Bermuda

Group C
Panama
Dominica
Nicaragua
Bahamas

Group D
Canada
St. Kitts and Nevis
Puerto Rico
St. Lucia

Group E
Grenada
Guatemala
St. Vincent and Grenadines
Belize

Group F
Haiti
Antigua and Barbuda
Curacao
U.S. Virgin Islands

First, my thoughts on the draw. CONCACAF avoided disaster despite their horrible seeding procedure. Cuba should not have been exempted from this round in favor of Panama, but luckily Panama was drawn into a group where they will not be threatened. Grenada, a team that has no business being ranked ahead of Guatemala, was drawn against Guatemala and will now have to prove they were worthy of being the top seed.

El Salvador (Group A), Panama (Group C), Canada (Group D), and Haiti (Group F) are overwhelming favorites in their groups and will advance. Haiti, although not one of the power teams in CONCACAF, drew an incredibly favorable group to earn the mantle of overwhelming favorite. The true intrigue lies with Group B and E.

Group B pits top-seeded Trinidad and Tobago, a team that has been on a downslide since qualifying for the 2006 FIFA World Cup finals. Trinidad and Tobago almost got booted by Bermuda in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, and the two are matched up again here. Trinidad and Tobago has failed to qualify for the last two CONCACAF Gold Cups. However, this group is just simple enough for the Soca Warriors to advance as winners.

Group E pits Grenada against Guatemala. Guatemala delivered a 4-0 beating to Grenada in the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup group stage. Guatemala are infuriated by their poor FIFA ranking and will be looking to put on a show. Belize are an interesting team featuring strong athletes, and could finish in second place here, if not challenge Guatemala for supremacy.

Links
Here is an analysis of the entire CONCACAF Second Round (though the analysis of the makeup of Suriname's team is incorrect. Suriname consists predominantly of home-based players):
Group A breakdown:
Group B breakdown (mistakes Bahamas for Bermuda):
Group C breakdown:
Group D breakdown:
Group E breakdown:
Group F breakdown:
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Asia Round Three Draw

Australia, Bahrain, Japan, North Korea, and South Korea join the fifteen survivors from the second round of Asian qualifying for the fight for Brasil 2014. These twenty teams will have to navigate two group stages to qualify for the finals, but only the draw for the third round was performed today. The twenty teams were split into five groups of four teams, with the top two teams in each group qualifying for the fourth round. Each team will play the other three teams in their group home and away for a total of six matches.

The top seed in each group is listed first, followed by the second seed, the third seed, and the fourth seed.

Group A
China
Jordan
Iraq
Singapore

Group B
South Korea
Kuwait
United Arab Emirates
Lebanon

Group C
Japan
Uzbekistan
Syria
North Korea

Group D
Australia
Saudi Arabia
Oman
Thailand

Group E
Iran
Qatar
Bahrain
Indonesia

My picks for the ten teams advancing are:
Iraq, Jordan, South Korea, Kuwait, Japan, Uzbekistan, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Qatar.

Group A pits China and Iraq against each other as in the first group stage of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. China is the weakest of the top seeds, and has not really put together any memorable results since qualifying for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. Jordan and Iraq both qualified for the quarterfinals of the 2011 AFC Asian Cup. Iraq for sure should advance out of this group, but the fight for second may come down to which of the three favorites can get a win in Singapore. Jordan is the upset pick over China.

Groups B and D should be straightforward for their respective top two seeds.

Group C is the Group of Death in the AFC Third Round. The champion and fourth-place side from the 2011 AFC Asian Cup join a 2010 FIFA World Cup participant and a strong West Asian side. North Korea is a world-class defensive side, but they will have difficulty finding goals, leading me to believe they will fall at this stage. North Korea present a stiffer challenge than Syria to Uzbekistan's bid for second, but North Korea are just as likely to lose at home to Syria as they are to win in Uzbekistan. Japan are the class of Asia and would steer safely through any Asian group. Uzbekistan should follow.

Group E is Iran's group to win. The real fun is the battle between Gulf rivals Bahrain and Qatar, two countries with under two million inhabitants who always punch above their weight in football and economic might. For me, this is the greatest tossup of the AFC Third Round, but Qatar are the pick due to the added resources they are sure to receive for their training and coaching from their government, who is keen on having a successful national side before Qatar host the 2022 FIFA World Cup finals.

Links
Group A breakdown:
Group B breakdown:
Group D breakdown:
Group E breakdown:
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Africa Round Two Draw

The twelve winners from the first round join twenty-eight other hopefuls in the group phase of African qualifying for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. These forty teams were split into ten groups of four by the preliminary draw. Each team will play the other three teams in their group home and away for a total of six matches. Only the ten group winners survive to face the prospect of a third round of qualifying. For the other thirty teams, the dream ends here.
The top seed in each group is listed first, followed by the second seed, the third seed, and the fourth seed.

Group A
South Africa
Botswana
Central African Republic
Winner of Series 7

Group B
Tunisia
Cape Verde
Sierra Leone
Winner of Series 6

Group C
Cote d'Ivoire
Morocco
Gambia
Winner of Series 12

Group D
Ghana
Zambia
Sudan
Winner of Series 8

Group E
Burkina Faso
Gabon
Niger
Winner of Series 11

Group F
Nigeria
Malawi
Winner of Series 1
Winner of Series 3

Group G
Egypt
Guinea
Zimbabwe
Winner of Series 5

Group H
Algeria
Mali
Benin
Winner of Series 9

Group I
Cameroon
Libya
Winner of Series 2
Winner of Series 10

Group J
Senegal
Uganda
Angola
Winner of Series 4

My early predictions for group winners:
Botswana, Tunisia, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Egypt, Algeria, Cameroon, Uganda

Group J is the pick of the lot. Senegal have been overrated since their quarterfinal run at the 2002 FIFA World Cup. Star striker El Hadji Diouf was just suspended from Senegal's national team for five years, so he will be absent from this tournament. Angola were the weakest side at the 2006 FIFA World Cup finals. Both Angola and Senegal failed to advance to the final round of CAF qualifying in 2010. Uganda finished level on points with Angola in that tournament and would have qualified for the final round as one of the second-place teams, but Angola won a kooky tiebreaker and both sides were eliminated. Uganda and Angola are in the same group for 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying with Uganda four points clear of Angola, having beaten Angola 3-0 already.

Group I is deceptively tough. Cameroon and Libya are in, but they are likely to be joined by Togo and DR Congo, a tough bunch indeed. However, none of these teams have the firepower to match Cameroon if Cameroon perform to their potential.
Group A is primed for an upset with neighbors South Africa and Botswana grouped together. South Africa has been on the upswing after their good performance as hosts of the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals, defeating France and tying Mexico. However, this was preceded by a failed attempt to make the final round of qualifying for the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations. South Africa could only manage one point from two games against Sierra Leone in that tournament. However, South Africa are currently winning a group with nemesis Sierra Leone and powerhouse Egypt in qualifying for 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying. Why then would Botswana, who has never qualified for anything before, be the pick? Botswana is one of four teams to have already qualified for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations, along with the two hosts and top seed Cote d'Ivoire. Botswana have safely navigated a group with Togo, Tunisia, and emerging presence Malawi to make its maiden appearance at the tournament finals, and have only lost once in the past two years (a friendly loss to Sweden).

Links
Here is a response to the whole African draw.
CAF Second Round overview:
Here is an article on the rise of Botswana.
Group A breakdown:
Group B breakdown:
Group C breakdown:
Here is the response to the Group D pairings.
Group D breakdown:
Group E breakdown:
Group F breakdown:
Group G breakdown:
Group H breakdown:
Group I breakdown:
Group J breakdown:
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Africa Round One Draw

The first round of CAF qualifying will feature twenty-four teams matched up in twelve home-and-away aggregate-goals series with the twelve winners advancing to the second round. The CAF First Round matches are scheduled for 11 November 2011 and 15 November 2011. The lower seed will host the first leg, and the higher seed will host the second leg.

The higher seeded team is listed first. The number before the matchup is the series number that corresponds to the placement of the series winner in the second round group phase.

1: Kenya - Seychelles
2: Togo - Guinea-Bissau

3: Namibia - Djibouti
4: Liberia - Mauritius

5: Mozambique - Comoros
6: Madagascar - Equatorial Guinea

7: Ethiopia - Somalia
8: Burundi - Lesotho

9: Rwanda-. Eritrea
10: Democratic Republic of Congo - Swaziland

11: Congo - Sao Tome e Principe
12: Chad - Tanzania

Quite honestly, I do not see any of the lower seeds advancing. The closest matchup may be Equatorial Guinea, who are now pulling in Spanish players of Equatorial Guinean descent into the national side, but Madagascar have been a tough side recently. Madagascar drew Cote d'Ivoire and Mozambique in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, and defeated Botswana.

The marquee matchup involves DR Congo and Swaziland. DR Congo were the first African team to grace a FIFA World Cup finals in 1974 but have not returned since. Swaziland defeated Togo and tied Zambia in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
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Intercontinental Playoffs Draw

This will be the first of several posts regarding the outcome of the preliminary draw. The posts will be done in the same order as the preliminary draw itself, with the intercontinental playoffs being first, followed by Africa, Asia, CONCACAF, Oceania, and Europe.

The fourth-place finisher from CONCACAF, the fifth-place finisher from CONMEBOL, the fifth-place finisher from the AFC, and the winner of the OFC will advance to these intercontinental playoffs. Per the results of the draw, the matchups are as follows.

AFC 5th place versus CONMEBOL 5th place

CONCACAF 4th place versus OFC 1st place

These matchups are expected to take place in November 2013. They will both be home-and-away aggregate-goals series. The winners will be the 31st and 32nd teams to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup finals in Brasil.
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Friday, July 29, 2011

AFC Pot Allocations

After the AFC Second Round reach its conclusion today with the elimination of fifteen hopefuls, the list of twenty AFC Third Round participants was finalized, thus allowing for the release of AFC's pot allocations for the draw. Interesting notes are that Bahrain and North Korea, both given byes to the Third Round based on their performances in the previous FIFA World Cup, were not even among the teams in the top two pots. I commend the AFC for being proactive in rewarding teams for doing well in their flagship events by giving them a respite from qualifying from future events. The top three finishers from the previous AFC Asian Cup automatically qualify for the next AFC Asian Cup, and the top five Asian finishers in the previous FIFA World Cup, get to skip the first two rounds of the next qualification cycle.

There are four pots consisting of five teams each. The teams will be drawn into five groups of four, with each group consisting of one team from Pot 1, one from Pot 2, one from Pot 3, and one from Pot 4.

The Pots are broken down as follows.

Pot 1
1. Japan
2. Australia
3. South Korea
4. Iran
5. China

Pot 2
6. Uzbekistan
7. Qatar
8. Jordan
9. Saudi Arabia
10. Kuwait

Pot 3
11. Bahrain
12. Syria
13. Oman
14. Iraq
15. United Arab Emirates

Pot 4
16. North Korea
17. Thailand
18. Singapore
19. Indonesia
20. Lebanon
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Thursday, July 28, 2011

Palestine 2 - Thailand 2; Iran 1 - Maldives 0; Yemen 0 - Iraq 0

Palestine hosted its second ever FIFA World Cup qualifier at home today, playing host to Thailand in Al Ram. Two Palestinian starters from the previous leg, midfielder Mohammed Samara and fullback Majed Abusidu, were denied entry into their home country by Israeli authorities. Thailand came in with a 1-0 advantage on the aggregate scoreboard, but perhaps even more importantly, without having surrendered a road goal. That advantage was quickly wiped away by an early strike from Murad Elyyan of Palestine, and the hosts had a 1-0. Datsakorn Thonglao of Thailand snatch one back after the half hour to make the match score 1-1. More importantly, Palestine knew it would have to win the remainder of the match by two goals to overcome Thailand's road goal advantage.

No changes to the scoreboard were seen until the final minute of regulation when new national hero Elyyan scored to put Palestine up 2-1 heading into stoppage time. Now Palestine were but one goal away from advancing. Khader Yosef was sent off the pitch four minutes into second half stoppage time for a goal-saving foul, leaving Palestine with ten men for the dying seconds of the match. Thonglao capitalized on the numerical advantage with an immediate goal off the ensuing free kick to end the match knotted at 2-2. Thailand advanced 3-2 on the aggregate, a margin that really should have been larger had Thailand not squandered so many chances in the first leg. Regardless, Palestine had their most success qualification cycle to date, and will be sad to have seen it end.

Iran went to the island paradise city of Male looking to eliminate Maldives from the FIFA World Cup. Though in reality Iran could lose the match by three and still win the series (Iran won the first leg 4-0), their fans expected nothing less than a resounding victory.

Their fans are going to have to settle for a victory by the minimum scoreline. Iran pushed the only goal of the match across the line at the death of the first period of play. The 1-0 halftime lead help up, and Iran advanced 5-0 on aggregate scoring. The Iranians played solid defense throughout the series and will be looking forward to greater successes later in the tournament.

Yemen faced Iraq as the nominal home side as they two teams faced off in Al Ain City, United Arab Emirates. Iraq was leading the aggregate 2-0 after a first-leg victory in Arbil.

Neither team got anything substantial going on offense, which suited Iraq just fine considering their lead on the aggregate scoreboard. The teams played out the second scoreless draw of the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Iraq wins the series 2-0 and sends Yemen out of the tournament. Yemen were the only Arab nation eliminated in the AFC Second Round, but falling to another Arab nation in the process. Iraq, the 2007 AFC Asian Cup champions, are looking to regain their position among the Asian powerhouses and will learn their path to the final round of AFC qualifying at the preliminary draw on Saturday.

Goals:
Palestine
Murad Elyyan 6, 90
Datsakorn Thonglao 33, 90+5

Iran
Mohammad Khalatbari 45

Match Reports:

Highlights:


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Singapore 1 - Malaysia 1; Vietnam 2 - Qatar 1; United Arab Emirates 2 - India 2

Qatar paid a visit to Southeast Asia for its second round, second leg match against Vietnam. Qatar had a 3-0 aggregate lead in the bag, but Vietnam did not want to surrender its FIFA World Cup dreams just yet. A goal from Qatar at the quarter hour provided Qatar with the road goals tiebreaker, forcing Vietnam to respond with five goals in order to advance.

The impossible task had seen no progress by the close of the half, with Qatar still leading 1-0. However, Vietnam did score at the hour mark and with just under a quarter hour left in the match. The two goals were sufficient for a 2-1 Vietnamese victory on the day but insufficient for progressing to the next round of qualifying. Qatar advance to see their fate at the preliminary draw.

Singapore had escaped their home leg against rivals Malaysia with a two-goal aggregate series lead, but they knew the going would be tough in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia were confident they could turn the deficit around because they had a three road goals in their favor, meaning a 2-0 or 3-1 or even 4-2 victory would equate to a series victory. However, Malaysia needed to win by two goals, something that seemed far away after a scoreless first leg surely left the fans anxious for some goals quickly.

Just before the hour mark, Malaysia energized its campaign with a goal, bringing the aggregate score to 5-4 Singapore. Malaysia only needed one more goal to even the score and lead Singapore on road goals! Malaysia were prodding for the goal, but then fifteen minutes after Malaysia's goal, Singapore notched an equalizer, leaving Malaysia needing to score twice in the quarter hour. It did not happen. The teams tied 1-1 on the night and Singapore advanced 6-4 on aggregate scoring, vanquishing their fiercest rivals in the process. Singapore survives to learn its fate in two days' time.

India were stunned by the poor officiating that doomed that to defeat in the first leg of their series against the United Arab Emirates. The Indian capital New Delhi was the site for the second encounter. This time, UAE set out to erase all doubt that they were in fact the better team, poor officiating or not. The field was sopping wet from a recent downpour, meaning the ball did not roll naturally during this encounter but instead would stop much shorter than usual. UAE found the only goal of the first half with barely five minutes to go, pushing the aggregate lead to 4-0 and forcing India to score five times to advance.

UAE continued searching for a win on the night to silence their doubters, and the victory appeared secured after a second goal rattled in off the crossbar twenty minutes from time. India, at this point all but eliminated, did not want UAE to have the satisfaction of a road victory. Two minutes after UAE's second, India struck. In second half stoppage time, the equalizer came, leaving the match drawn at 2-2 and India wondering what could have been had they been given a fairer officiating job in the first leg. UAE never proved themselves superior, but they advance to the AFC Thrid Round nonetheless with a deceivingly large margin of victory in the aggregate score, 5-2.

India's qualifying campaign eerily reflected its 2010 campaign. In 2010 qualifying as in the 2014 edition, India lost their first leg by three goals on the road, only to tie their return home leg 2-2 with an equalizer in second half stoppage time.

Goals:
Vietnam
Nguyen Trong Hoang 60
Nguyen Quang Hai 78

Qatar
Yousef Ahmed Ali 16

Malaysia
Mohd Sali 58

Singapore
Jia Yi Shi 73

United Arab Emirates
Mohamed Al Shehhi 39
Ali Al Wehaibi 71

India
Jeje Lalpekhlua 73
Gouramangi Singh 90+2

Match Reports:

Highlights:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XzCJuWDpJ8 (India v. United Arab Emirates)
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Indonesia 4 - Turkmenistan 3; Bangladesh 2 - Lebanon 0; Saudi Arabia 5 - Hong Kong 0

Indonesia had been the only road team to snatch a result in the first leg of its AFC Second Round series after securing a 1-1 draw in Turkmenistan. The return affair in Jakarta was by far the most exciting of the matches during this matchday.

Indonesia got a brace before the twentieth minute from Cristian Gonzales (pictured, #9) to put Turkmenistan down before they truly knew what hit them. Funny how two men named Mohammed followed Cristian's goal, but such is the beauty of the diversity of the world's fourth most populous country. Mohammed Nasuha ended the first half with a goal to make the score 3-0.

However, with just twenty minutes to go, Nasuha accidentally threw Turkmenistan a life line with an own goal. The other Mohammed, Mr. Ridwan (pictured, second from right) scored Indonesia's fourth, which ended up being the matchwinner. Turkmenistan looked to be done with a 78th minute red card to Bahtiyar Hojaahmedov, but after his dismissal Turkmenistan scored two desperate goals in the final ten minutes. Indonesia won the affair 4-3 and the aggregate 5-4 to become the only lower seed to advance out of its second round series. Indonesia now face the prospect of the preliminary draw on Saturday.

Bangladesh had fallen 4-0 to Lebanon in Beirut, but there would be a different story written on this day in Dhaka. Lebanon held Bangladesh scoreless for a half, which certainly gave the Cedars all the reason to believe that they would see out their four-goal advantage to the finish.

Nevertheless, Bangladesh valiantly soldiered on in the second period. A goal within ten minutes of the restart certainly gave life to Bangladesh, who went on to secure what must surely be their most impressive win in their country's history after a goal in the last five minutes made the final scoreline 2-0 in favor of the unheralded home side. Bangladesh ends their qualifying campaign on a high note and a record of two wins, a draw, and a loss. Lebanon definitely lost the day's battle but won the aggregate war 4-2 to advance to the AFC Third Round, where Lebanon will be the underdog in every match they play.

Saudi Arabia made the cross-continental trip to Hong Kong looking to solidify their status as a force in Asia with a victory to match their victory in the first leg. Saudi Arabia scored once in the first half to claim the road goals tiebreaker and all but end Hong Kong's hopes.

Saudi Arabia had the match on cruise control until about twenty minutes were left, at which point Saudi Arabia hit the accelerator and dusted Hong Kong with four goals to disgrace the home side with a 5-0 beatdown and a 8-0 series destruction. Hong Kong bid farewell to the tournament while Saudi Arabia look to build upon this victory in the next phase.

Goals:
Indonesia
Cristian Gonzales 10, 18
Mohammad Nasuha 42
Mohammad Ridwan 76

Turkmenistan
Mohammad Nasuha 70 (OG)
Berdy Shamuradov 83
Gahrymanberdy Chonkaev 86 PK

Bangladesh
Mithan Chowdhury 52
Zahid Hasan Emily 87

Saudi Arabia
Hassan Fallatah 34
Mohammed Noor 71 PK
Nassir Al Shamrani 73
Mohammed Al-Sahlawi 78
Osama Hawsawi 90+2

Match Reports:

Highlights:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aazr6qJD_k0 (Indonesia v. Turkmenistan)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7XZ2QC-SmE (Saudi Arabia v. Hong Kong)
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Syria 4 - Tajikistan 0; Kuwait 2 - Philippines 1; Uzbekistan 3 - Kyrgyzstan 0

Syria headed to Tursunzade to take on hosts Tajikistan. Syria had escaped their home leg with a 2-1 lead but were in real danger of letting the lead slip and facing an earlier-than-anticipated exit from the tournament. The game-winning goalscorer from the previous match, Raja Rafe, scored within the first ten minutes to erase the road goals advantage held be Tajikistan. Rafe then struck again later in the half to put Syria up 2-0 and force Tajikistan the uneviable task of needing to collect four goals in the second half.

Syria had no sympathy for their opponent's plight, and gathered a third goal within ten minutes of the restart. Poor Tajikistan also had the misfortune of being the first team to score an own goal in the 2014 FIFA World Cup, leaving the final score at 4-0 and the series in Syria's favor 6-1. Syria lives to learn its fate two days from now at the preliminary draw.

The Philippines headed home looking to overcome a 3-0 aggregate deficit in front of their Azkal faithful in Manila. The fan based had been disappointed not to have scored early in the first leg, and especially after the final result. However, the stadium was sold out with a distinct Filipino advantage in the stands. The Philippines scored their first goal in first half stoppage time through an absolute scorching laser off the boot of Stephan Shrock (pictured, white).

However, Kuwait did not come to Manila simply to hold on to their aggregate lead for dear life; they came to win, and that they did. After the hour mark, Kuwait evened the match. They then proceeded to knock home the winner five minutes from time and claim the match 2-1 and the series 5-1. The Philippines go home, but the Azkals can take pride in having advanced past Sri Lanka despite not having participated in the 2010 FIFA World Cup at all.

Fahad Al Ebrahim gave the Azkal faithful even more reason to believe after he was sent off for Kuwait in the 58th minute for a straight red card.

Uzbekistan crossed the border into Kyrgyzstan looking to finish off their neighbors without issue after winning the first leg at home 4-0. The first half did not produce anything about which to write. The second half appeared to reawaken Uzbekistan. Two minutes in, the first goal came. Halfway through the period came the second, and the third fell in the final minute of regulation. A goal at the start, the middle, and the end, these were the most spread out three goals imaginable to be scored in the same half.

Uzbekistan win the match 3-0 and the series 7-0, leaving no question as to who was the best side in this series. Uzbekistan look forward now to the preliminary draw with an eye on advancing to the AFC Fourth Round as one of the top two teams in their group. For me, Uzbekistan is favored to claim one of the four direct entries to the Brasil 2014, along with Australia, South Korea, and Asian Cup winners Japan.

Goals:
Syria
Raja Rafe 6, 35
Nadim Sabagh 53
Farrukh Choriev 86 (OG)

Kuwait
Yousef Naser 61
Waleed Jumah 85

Philippines
Stephan Shrock 45+3

Uzbekistan
Victor Karpenko 47
Bahodir Nasimov 65, 90

Match Reports:

Highlights:


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Oman 2 - Myanmar 0; Nepal 1 - Jordan 1; China 6 - Laos 1

The first match of the day is still the only one yet to finish, but I have an inkling that it will never be finished. Oman went into Yangon holding a 2-0 aggregate lead to take on their hosts Myanmar in the return leg of their series. Oman scored the opener midway through the first half, leaving Myanmar with the task of scoring four unanswered goals to stay alive in the competition.

Oman was awarded a controversial penalty toward the end of the first half. The penalty had been converted to give Oman a 2-0 lead, which ended up being both the halftime score and the final score. During second half stoppage time, the match was abandoned due to the rocks and shattered glass being thrown at Omani players and the officials by the unruly and unhappy crowd, distraught by the perceived unjust penalty awarded to Oman and the impending elimination of Myanmar. FIFA is unlikely to force the teams to finish the match. Oman win the series 4-0 and advance to the preliminary draw in two days' time.

Nepal were looking to save face in front of their home fans in rainy Kathmandu after receiving a 9-0 mauling in Jordan in the first leg. The fans were more than likely bracing themselves for the worst, but their boys made a good account for themselves on the day. A scoreless first half gave Nepal hope that they could pull off an unexpected result and stun Jordan on the day, although the series was beyond reach.

Jordan opened the scoring a couple of minutes beyond the hour mark, but Nepal never quit on the match and scored ten minutes from time to bring relief to the crowd and restore honor to the team. Nepal ended the match and its tournament with a creditable 1-1 draw against a good West Asian side. Jordan will not mind the result one bit, however, as they win the series 10-1 and advance to the third round.

China visited neighbors Laos in Vientiane, looking to finish off the series after their opening 7-2 defeat of Laos in the first leg. Unlike in the first leg, Laos were unable to jump out to a lead, for China were on the alert from the start. China pounded in two goals in the first period to let Laos know they would have no chance to advance.

Laos pulled back a goal just after the restart and China's Yang Hao had a chipped penalty kick easily saved at 2-1, but China were in no giving mood and promptly proceeded to net four more goals to win the match 6-1 and the series 13-3. China hope to hear more good news when they learn of their fate at the preliminary draw on Saturday. Laos leave the tournament having taken down one neighbor (Cambodia) and succumbed to another (China).

Goals:
Oman
Amad Ali 22
Ismail Al Ajmi 39 PK

Jordan
Saeed Morjan 62

Nepal
Bharat Khawas 80

China
Qu Bo 24
Yu Hanchao 36, 88
Deng Zhuoxiang 67, 83
Yang Xu 90+2

Laos
Visay Phaphouvanin 47

Match Reports:

Highlights:


Full Match Video: (Nepal v. Jordan)
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Wednesday, July 27, 2011

UEFA Pot Allocations

UEFA, the two-time defending champions of the FIFA World Cup (Italy 2006, Spain 2010), will be busy finishing qualifying for the finals of UEFA Euro 2012 this year. However, qualifying for the 2014 FIFA World Cup will kickoff in Europe in the second half of 2012, a few months after the conclusion of UEFA Euro 2012.

The 53 member nations of UEFA will be drawn into nine groups for FIFA World Cup qualifying. Groups A, B, C, D, E, F, G, and H will have six teams. Group I will have five teams. The 53 teams have been split into six pots. All groups except Group I will feature one team from Pot 1, one from Pot 2, one from Pot 3, one from Pot 4, one from Pot 5, and one from Pot 6. Group I will not feature a team from Pot 6.

Pot 1
1. Spain
2. Netherlands
3. Germany
4. England
5. Portugal
6. Italy
7. Croatia
8. Norway
9. Greece

Pot 2
10. France
11. Montenegro
12. Russia
13. Sweden
14. Denmark
15. Slovenia
16. Turkey
17. Serbia
18. Slovakia

Pot 3
19. Switzerland
20. Israel
21. Ireland
22. Belgium
23. Czech Republic
24. Bosnia and Herzegovina
25. Belarus
26. Ukraine
27. Hungary

Pot 4
28. Bulgaria
29. Romania
30. Georgia
31. Lithuania
32. Albania
33. Scotland
34. Northern Ireland
35. Austria
36. Poland

Pot 5
37. Armenia
38. Finland
39. Estonia
40. Cyprus
41. Latvia
42. Moldova
43. Macedonia
44. Azerbaijan
45. Faroe Islands

Pot 6
46. Wales
47. Liechtenstein
48. Iceland
49. Kazakhstan
50. Luxembourg
51. Malta
52. Andorra
53. San Marino
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CAF Pot Allocations

Africa has been awarded five spots at the 2014 FIFA World Cup finals in Brasil. The fifty-two participating CAF member nations will learn their qualifying fates this Saturday, 30 July 2011, at the preliminary draw in Rio de Janeiro. The bottom twenty-four teams in the ranking will have to play in the first round of African qualifying.

Teams ranked 29 to 40 have been placed in Pot 5. Teams ranked 41 to 52 have been placed in Pot 6. One team from each pot will be drawn into a home-and-away aggregate goals series. The series will be numbered from 1 to 12. Teams have been placed in pots 5 and 6 for the first-round draw as follows.

Pot 5
29. Mozambique
30. Democratic Republic of Congo
31. Togo
32. Liberia
33. Tanzania
34. Congo
35. Kenya
36. Rwanda
37. Ethiopia
38. Namibia
39. Burundi
40. Madagascar

Pot 6
41. Guinea-Bissau
42. Equatorial Guinea
43. Chad
44. Swaziland
45. Comoros
46. Lesotho
47. Eritrea
48. Somalia
49. Djibouti
50. Mauritius
51. Seychelles
52. Sao Tome e Principe

The second part of the draw for African qualifiers involves the 28 highest-ranked teams, who were split into Pots 1,2, and 3, plus 12 reserved places for the first round winners, which have been split into Pots 3 and 4. The teams will be drawn into ten groups of four, with one team in each group coming from Pot 1, one from Pot 2, one from Pot 3, and one from Pot 4.

Pot 1
1. Cote d'Ivoire
2. Egypt
3. Ghana
4. Burkina Faso
5. Nigeria
6. Senegal
7. South Africa
8. Cameroon
9. Algeria
10. Tunisia

Pot 2
11. Gabon
12. Libya
13. Morocco
14. Guinea
15. Botswana
16. Malawi
17. Zambia
18. Uganda
19. Mali
20. Cape Verde

Pot 3
21. Benin
22. Zimbabwe
23. Central African Republic
24. Sierra Leone
25. Sudan
26. Niger
27. Angola
28. Gambia
29. Winner of Series 1
30. Winner of Series 2

Pot 4
31-40. Winners of Series 3-12
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Saturday, July 23, 2011

Syria 2 - Tajikistan 1; Saudi Arabia 3 - Hong Kong 0; Jordan 9 - Nepal 0

Sometimes there is nothing like a good ole whupping to liven up FIFA World Cup qualifying cylce. Today, we experienced our first, on Jordanian soil in Amman.

Jordan used four different goalscorers to end the first half with a 4-0 lead. Three of those goalscorers scored again in the second half. Hasan Abdel Mahmoud found the netting four times, including three minutes into second half stoppage time. Nepal suffered the worst beating so far in this FIFA World Cup by a scoreline of 9-0 and will be playing for nothing more than pride during their home leg in five days' time.

Syria hosted Tajikistan in a matchup from which not many people knew what to expect. Syria were favorites, but they were playing the match in Amman, Jordan, and Tajikistan are rarely ever seen on the footballing scene. Syria took a last gasp lead from the first half after scoring their first in stoppage time.

However, right after the restart Tajikistan knotted the equalizer in the form of a road goal, evening the match and series at 1-1. Syria were glad to secure the victory with a goal around fifteen minutes before time was called, and the match did end by that 2-1 scoreline. The scoreline means that the return leg in Tursunzade will be incredibly interesting, with the hosts down only one goal and with a road goal in the bag. The story's final chapter will be written next Thursday.

Saudi Arabia hosted underdogs Hong Kong on an absolutely gorgeous field in Dammam. The match was closed until a spurt of genius play by the Saudis spanning both sides of the halftime led to the final result.

Saudi Arabia broke the offsides trap of Hong Kong with a perfectly laced cross and a subsequent chip finish by Nassir Al Shamrani in the first minute of first-half stoppage time. Two minutes more into stoppage time, Saudi Arabia pushed in a second goal off of headed ball from a free kick. Two minutes after the break, a free kick rolling through ball found Al Shamrani wide open in front of net, from where he finished his brace.

Saudi Arabia takes its deserved 3-0 aggregate lead into Hong Kong in five days looking to join the other Asian giants in the third round of qualifying. Hong Kong will have to play without the six minute lapse of concentration that doomed them in the first leg.

Goals:
Jordan
Hasan Abdel Mahmoud 10, 74, 84, 90+3
Amer Khalil Deeb 23, 57
Ahmad Kayel 32, 68
Abd Allah Deeb 45+1

Syria
George Mourad 45+1
Raja Rafe 77

Tajikistan
Kamel Saedov 47

Saudi Arabia
Nassir Al Shamrani 45+1, 47
Osama Al Harbi 45+3

Match Reports:

Highlights:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYKJA3iYH1M (Saudi Arabia v. Hong Kong)
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United Arab Emirates 3 - India 0; Qatar 3 - Vietnam 0; Kuwait 3 - Philippines 0

The hotly anticipated showdown in Al Ain City between the United Arab Emirates and India never materialized thanks to the horrible officiating of Qatar's Banjar Al Dosari.

UAE started strong, but India's defense appeared to be up to the challenge until the match was taken out of their hands. Ali Al Wehaibi went down in the box from minimal contact from behind in minute 19. The referee marked a penalty, but also added to India's misery by sending off defender Roy Debabrata. The penalty was converted. Ismail Al Hammadi decided to flop in minute 23 after feigning a knee to his groin from India goalkeeper Subrata Pal. The referee gave Pal a red card for the phantom foul and awarded a penalty kick to UAE even though Pal had possession of the ball, a clear contradiction to the rules of the game. India was down to nine players. The remaining Indian players nearly walked off the pitch in protest, for which I would not have blamed them, and the match was delayed for a good five minutes during their angry protests. Backup goalkeeper Karanjit Singh could not save the second penalty kick, but he was a miracle worker for 9-man India, preventing the hemorrhaging of goals that would have eliminated India before the second leg.

A third goal eventually came, but only after India had been down two players for over fifty minutes. UAE walked out with the most undeserved 3-0 victory ever witnessed, and the only way to right this wrong is to hope Mr. Al Dosari gets his refereeing license revoked. Perhaps India can overcome a three-goal deficit in Delhi five days from now, but do not expect too much for an understandably rattled and angry team.

Qatar, much maligned after a recent friendly loss to India, welcomed red hot Vietnam into Doha for the first leg of their qualifying series. The hosts were rather unwelcoming to the Vietnamese, however, sending them back to the dressing room at the half facing a 1-0 deficit. Qatar continued their dominance in the second half and pushed across two more goals to crystallize the score as a 3-0 final.

The match seemed routine, and the ability of Qatar to neutralize Le Cong Vinh may prove to be the downfall of Vietnam, who in spite of a raucous home crowd in five days' time is unlikely to overturn the aggregate deficit.

The Philippines visited Kuwait City to face Kuwait, but judging by the amount of Filipinos in the stands, the site could have been Quezon City for all anyone could judge. The pro-Philippines crowd had plenty of reason to get excited in the first half as the Philippines actually attacked more often than Kuwait, but it was Kuwait who scored the only goal of the half, doing so against the run of play.

Kuwait's superiority truly began to shine through during the second half. The hot conditions seemed to wear down the Philippines slowly whereas Kuwait seemed fresh throughout. A goal midway through the period scored on a loose ball scramble at the goal line should have alerted Philippines manager Michael Weiss to the necessity of substituting his players, but Weiss was asleep at the wheel and did not make a change until the ninetieth minute and even then did not use all three substitutions available to him. By that point, a great strike from outside the box from Fahad Al Ebrahim had already made the score a fully deserved 3-0 in Kuwait's favor, and only great goalkeeper from Philippines' Neil Etheridge prevented a mauling.

The second leg takes place on Thursday in Manila. Perhaps Weiss will be awake for that match, though it may be too difficult to ask him to come up with a winning gameplan down 3-0 in the series.

Goals:
United Arab Emirates
Ismail Hamdan 21 PK
Mohamed Al Shehhi 29 PK
Ismail Al Hammadi 82

Qatar
Mohamed Kasoula 6
Meshal Mubarak 51
Yousef Ahmad Ali 68

Kuwait
Yousef Al Suleiman 16
Mesaed Al Enezi 68
Fahad Al Ebrahim 84

Match Reports:

Highlights:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9D87p1Bku0 (United Arab Emirates v. India)


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Iran 4 - Maldives 0; Oman 2 - Myanmar 0; Iraq 2 - Yemen 0

Iran began its series against Maldives at home in Tehran. Any nerves felt by the home side were quickly squashed by a fourth-minute goal from Karim Ansari Fard. Though Iran were unable to further their advantage in the first period, the second period proved more fruitful.

Ansari Fard provided the second at the hour mark, leading the three-goal second half onslaught on the Maldives' goal. The 4-0 result all but eliminates Maldives, who do have the honors of hosting the second leg in Male in five days' time.

Oman were heavy favorites against a Myanmar team that escaped its first round with a 2-1 series win over Mongolia. Oman did not put the series out of reach with its first leg result, however. The fans in Muscat left happy yet unsatisfied with the result.

One goal midway through the first half gave Oman the 1-0 lead at halftime. Myanmar refused to succumb to Oman, and only a goal ten minutes from time gave Oman an important 2-0 win and a two-goal advantage in the series. Oman will be wary that Myanmar have already overcome a shutout loss in a first leg to win a series once during this qualifying cycle; the fans in Yangon certainly will not let Myanmar forget that they have done the task before. The scene next Thursday promises to be exciting.

In a clash of Arab teams, Iraq hosted Yemen, a special occasion because it had been a while since Iraq got to play their home qualifiers on home soil. The scene for this encounter was Arbil, and the crowd of 20,000 strong were not disappointed. Iraq, quarterfinalists at this year's AFC Asian Cup, found the net within ten minutes of the opening whistle and held tough into the half with a 1-0 lead. A goal midway through the second period provided the final blow in a tough 2-0 win.

The return match will not be played in Yemen but instead in the United Arab Emirates, a country with which Iraq will be quite familiar after playing all four of its home matches in 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying in UAE. Yemen perhaps should have chosen a more neutral site, but it is too late to correct this mistake now. Iraq should close out the series after its resumption in five days.

Goals:
Iran
Karim Ansari Fard 4, 61
Ali Karimi 68
Saeid Daghighi Masouleh 86

Oman
Amad Ali 22
Ismail Al Ajmi 79

Iraq
Hawar Mulla Mohammed 9
Alaa Abdul Zahra 63

Match Reports:

Highlights:


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Turkmenistan 1 - Indonesia 1; Lebanon 4 - Bangladesh 0; Uzbekistan 4 - Kyrgyzstan 0

Turkmenistan and Indonesia faced off in the opener of a tossup series with no real favorite. Turkmenistan were looking to grab an advantage in their home leg in hot and steamy Ashgabat today, especially with Indonesia's starting midfielder Tony Sucipto missing the match with passport troubles. Turkmenistan were the team that opened the goalscoring on the day. This goal came in the first quarter hour, but visiting Indonesia wanted no part of a loss. At the half four mark, Indonesia equalized to make the game 1-1.

The second half was hard fought as seen by the seven cards shown in the final sixteen minutes of the match. Turkmenistan lost a man to a red card (Artur Gevorkyan), but it was no matter to the result. The field was in poor condition and Indonesia could not find a second goal. The 1-1 result sets up a wonderful second leg in Indonesia in five days.

Lebanon, in spite of recently being thrashed in three friendlies this month (6-0 home to Kuwait, 1-0 home to Oman, 6-2 at United Arab Emirates) were the clear favorites coming into their first match against Bangladesh, especially considering that the scene was Beirut. The draw was kind to the floundering Cedars, who repaid the draw gods for their reprieve but taking advantage of their opportunity. Two goals in each half with no cards incurred spelled the perfect match for Lebanon, who now lead the series 4-0 and have a foot in the door of the third round. All this in spite of the fact that Lebanon's home stadium was mostly filled with Bangladesh fans.

Bangladesh better pray for monsoon weather like they had in their home leg against Pakistan in order to have a true home field advantage and a chance to overcome the four goal deficit. Does anyone have the Dhaka weather report for Thursday?

Uzbekistan, the top Asian team participating in the second round of qualifying and a team tipped by many (including me) to eventually qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup finals in Brasil, began its likely lengthy journey to glory against neighboring Kyrgyzstan. Keep in mind that bad blood has existed between the two nations ever since 1999, when Uzbekistan erected a border fence to keep out suspected Kyrgyz terrorists who had been blamed for a bombing in Tashkent. The disputed border and the sealing of an Uzbek minority into Kyrgyz territory make for a bitter atmosphere whenever the two teams play.

The first leg was played in Tashkent, far from the troublesome border. Uzbekistan's brightest talent Odil Ahmedov did not take part in the match, but Uzbekistan were not fazed by the news. Uzbekistan got three goals from its 2011 AFC Asian Cup stars Alexander Geynrikh, Server Djeparov, and Ulugbek Bakaev along the way to victory. Geynrikh struck for the lone goal in the first half. Captain Djeparov made it 3-0 in the second half after an earlier strike by Russia-based Marat Bikmaev, and Bakaev sealed the result in second half stoppage time with a fourth to end it 4-0.

Kyrgyzstan is going to have to shut down the Uzbek attack in the second leg next Thursday while generating lots of offense. It does not appear to be in the cards for Kyrgyzstan, a team that did take Jordan to penalty kicks in the second round of AFC qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Goals:
Turkmenistan
Vyahcheslav Krendelev 11

Indonesia
Muhammad Ilham 29

Lebanon
Hassan Mattouk 16
Mahmoud El Ali 27
Ali Al Saadi 55
Tarek El Ali 64

Uzbekistan
Alexander Geynrikh 28
Marat Bikmaev 49
Server Djeparov 56
Ulugbak Bakaev 90+2

Match Reports:

Highlights:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yz1L8wkpSOo (Turkmenistan v. Indonesia)


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Singapore 5 - Malaysia 3; Thailand 1 - Palestine 0; China 7 - Laos 2

China opened up the second round of AFC qualifying at home to Laos in what on paper promised to be the most lopsided encounter of the fifteen scheduled for the day. However, what the crowd in Kunming witnessed could be described as a horror movie for the first half of play. In a shocking development, Laos scored in the fourth minute and again at the half hour more to send tremors of fear throughout China. However, no response has ever been more astonishing than that of the Chinese players.

A goal in injury time by Yang Xu made the score 2-1. In the second half, China more than made up for its shock start by pushing six goals across the line, including two more by Xu, who completed his hat trick. China's seventh and final goal of the match came from the penalty spot after the sending off of Laos's Ketsada Souksavanh with but a minute to go due to his second yellow card. China should easily close Laos out in five days.

Thailand hosted Palestine in Buriram in the opener of their aggregate series. Thailand was missing four injured players coming into the match, and were hoping to somehow bring an advantage into the second leg to be played before an impassioned Palestine fan base. Thailand found their opening goal around the midway point of the first half.

The score at the half was 1-0. Neither team found a way to push for another goal, leaving Thailand with the thinnest of margins going into the second leg in Palestine in five days' time. Thailand must feel snakebitten after hitting the crossbar two times and having a second-half penalty kick saved. Suchao Nutnum had his spot kick batted away in the dying moments of the match. However, the brightest news for Thailand is that their clean sheet means that Palestine leave with no road goals, so a solitary Thai goal in the second leg will force Palestine to score three to advance.

Singapore hosted Malaysia in the opener of one of the most anticipated second round series. The two fierce regional rivals were wary of each other, but both sides went into attack mode during the match, and to great effect. The sellout crowd was certainly not lacking for goals to enjoy.

However, the crowd was immediately silenced by a first minute goal by visiting Malaysia. Nevertheless, the boots of the Singapore players kept making noise. Star striker Aleksandar Duric (pictured, #9) opened their account six minutes after Malaysia and knotted the affair at one goal apiece. Qiu Li scored off a magnificent free kick for 2-1. Singapore found two more goals before the half to send the frenzied crowd into a celebration. 4-1 Singapore read the scoreboard. Five minutes into to the new half, Safiq Rahim was given the boot for a straight red, leaving Malaysia shorthanded and facing a mauling. However, a second yellow to Ismail Bin Yunos five minutes later left both sides with ten players. Malaysia appeared to utilize the extra space better, and scored twice in two minutes in the seventieth and seventy-first minutes to reach 4-3. However, Duric wanted a bigger lead going into the second leg, and he found Singapore's fifth for the 5-3 final.

In five days, the crowd at Kuala Lumpur will hope Malaysia will advance to the third round. Down by two goals, the Malaysians do have three road goals in the bag, so a 2-0 , 3-1, or 4-2 victory would suffice for winning the series.

Goals:
China
Yang Xu 45+2, 54, 72
Chen Tao 52, 88
Hao Junmin 82,90+1 PK

Laos
Soukaphone Vongchiengkham 4
Visay Phaphouvanin 31

Thailand
Jakkraphan Kaewprom 19

Singapore
Aleksandar Duric (pictured, #9) 7, 82
Qiu Li 22
Mustafic Rahdurin 44
Jia Yi Shi 45+1

Malaysia
Mohd Sali 1, 71
Hadi Bin Yahaya 70

Match Reports:

Highlights:



Full Match Video: (Thailand v. Palestine)
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