From hope to despair: Arab nations disappoint at continental showpieces in Asia, Africa
Riyadh: Tuesday evening was a forgettable one for Arab football as the two big hopes for the Africa Cup of Nations and AFC Asian Cup exited within hours of each other, both in the Round of 16.
First Saudi Arabia lost to South Korea in Qatar after a penalty shootout and then Morocco crashed out to South Africa in the Ivory Coast. And it was not just a bad Tuesday either.
As January started out, there were four big teams in the Africa Cup of Nations and 10 in the Asian Cup, meaning there were high hopes for all Arab football fans.
It started well.
Eight of 10 got through the group stage of the AFC Asian Cup, and two progressed to the knock-out stages in Africa. As we look forward to the quarterfinals in both, however, there are a combined total of two remaining.
Qatar, the host of the Asian Cup and a realistic contender for the title, and Jordan, very much the outsider. It is not the return that fans wanted.
At AFCON 2023, in particular, Arab performances have been dismal.
Morocco were one of the favorites to lift the African trophy and understandably so after reaching the semi-finals of the World Cup just over a year ago. Incredibly, the Atlas Lions were the only Arab representative to win a game, beating Tanzania and Zambia in the group stage.
Despite big stars playing at elite clubs in Europe, they lost 2-0 to South Africa in the Round of 16. Achraf Hakimi missed a penalty and Manchester United’s Sofyan Amrabat was red carded on a miserable evening.
North African teams have often struggled when the tournament is played elsewhere in the continent. Only Egypt have consistently found a way in the past.
Not this time. The Pharaohs squeezed through the group stage with three draws. This poor run was overshadowed for a while by the injury to Mohamed Saleh. The star is very much the focus for the seven-time champions on the pitch and off it.
His departure back to Liverpool became a huge topic and while there was talk of his return to Africa for the semi-final or final, that was never going to happen – not because there was no chance of being fit but because the team did not look capable.
A second-round exit to DR Congo on penalties was not a surprise and led to an apology from the Egyptian Football Association to their supporters.
Algeria’s form was worse. Despite the presence of Riyad Mahrez and other talents, the 2019 champions did not win a game and finished bottom of their group. Tunisia were just as bad and made little impact on the tournament.
Over in Asia, it had looked much better. Eight out of the 10 got through the group stage and Lebanon very nearly made it nine but fell in the final minutes against Tajikistan.
The real surprise was Oman’s failure. Despite a stellar showing in qualification for the 2022 World Cup, when they finished just a point behind Australia, the men from Muscat lost in the last minute to Saudi Arabia in the opening game. All they needed to do however was beat Kyrgyzstan to get to the last 16. They were unable to do so and went out. Also out was coach Branko Ivankovic.
Saudi Arabia were probably the biggest hope of going all the way. The three-time champions had Roberto Mancini, the man who led Italy to continental glory in Europe in 2021, as well as the backing of a large and loud contingent of fans.
After topping the group, the Green Falcons were unfortunate to face South Korea but were on top for the most part and took an early second-half lead.
Then, just 90 seconds from victory and after around 20 minutes of relentless Korean pressure, the equalizer came.
From that point, there was only going to be one winner and the East Asians won it on penalties.
Also falling was the UAE who never really got going, though the tournament had started with a comfortable win against Hong Kong, the lowest-ranked team in the tournament. A 1-1 draw against Palestine followed and then defeat to Iran. It was a mixed bag, but Paulo Bento’s men were still expected to beat Tajikistan in the second round.
Despite a stoppage-time Emirati equalizer, the Central Asians won the penalty shootout, and the UAE made the short journey home without really making an impact on the competition.
Syria huffed and puffed into the last 16 for the first time but could not get past 10-man Iran — losing on penalties — while Iraq were sensational in the group stage, beating favorites Japan 2-1, but then losing dramatically to Jordan 3-2, conceding two goals in injury time. Bahrain won their group but found Japan too strong.
There were pockets of good news, Palestine being the best. Despite the horrors at home, they drew with the UAE and then beat Hong Kong 3-0, a first-ever win in the tournament, to claim a first-ever appearance at the knockout stages of the Asian Cup. A 2-1 loss to the in-form Qatar there was no disgrace at all.
Qatar and Jordan are the only ones still standing. Of the 14 Arab teams — out of 48 nations — that started out in both continents, to have two left by the quarterfinals is disappointing to say the least.
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