AFC U23 Asian Cup:
Iran, Uzbekistan share the spoils in goalless draw
Iran and Uzbekistan played to a goalless stalemate in Group C of the AFC U23 Asian Cup in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Saturday.
Iran dominated all statistics at the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium, enjoying 66% of possession, but failed to break the deadlock for a second consecutive game, having shared the spoils with South Korea on Wednesday.
The result left Iran third in the group table with two points, while Uzbekistan stands second – level on four points with South Korea, which came from behind twice to beat Lebanon 4-2 earlier in the day to sit atop the table.
Iran will have to beat Lebanon on Tuesday to stand a chance of a top-two finish in the group and a place in the quarterfinals.
The bad news for Iran head coach Omid Ravankhah is that he will have to do without an established striker for its final game in the group after both Reza Ghandipour and Mohammad Asgari had to left the pitch against Uzbekistan due to injuries.
Asgari came off the bench to replace Ghandipour with 20 minutes remaining, only to be stretchered out 12 minutes later with what appeared to be a torn ligament injury – a massive blow for Sepahan, which has the young striker’s seven goals in 16 games to thank for the top spot in the Persian Gulf Pro League table.
Iran has managed to progress beyond the group phase only once in the previous four participations at the showpiece – at the 2016 edition, where Iran finished runner-up to host Qatar in the group before suffering a 3-0 loss to Japan in the last eight.
Elsewhere on Saturday, Japan defeated the United Arab Emirates 3-0 to maintain its perfect run in Group B and secure a knockout spot ahead of its final group game against Qatar on Tuesday.
Qatar fell to a shock 1-0 defeat against Syria to sit bottom of the group table and suffer an early exit from the competition. Syria is third in the table – equal on three points with the UAE.