Qatar kick off Asian Cup defence in style
Asian Cup hosts Qatar kicked off their title defence with a 3-0 win over Lebanon in the tournament opener on Friday with a brace from their prized playmaker Akram Afif and a goal from Almoez Ali. Following a glitzy opening ceremony with Qatar's ruler Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani also in attendance at the Lusail Stadium, Afif put on a show of his own to kickstart their campaign with three valuable points in the bag. "Akram was named the most valuable player of the match, he's a very high-quality player and he deserves that," Qatar coach Marquez Lopez told reporters. "I was very happy with the match and how we delivered on our own pitch, the players gave 200 percent of what was required." Qatar scored early through the 2019 tournament's top scorer Ali and the crowd went ballistic when he found the net, but the euphoria died down quickly when everyone saw the linesman's flag up for offside. The hosts dominated the opening stages but Lebanon slowly found their footing, with veteran skipper Hassan Maatouk firing a warning shot straight at Qatar goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham. Afif was the busiest player in the final third, staying two steps ahead of the Lebanon defence by finding space and creating plenty of chances while the playmaker also saw a header graze the crossbar on its way over. The Al-Sadd player's persistence finally paid off at the stroke of halftime when Ali trapped the ball inside the box, saw an unmarked Afif arrive and backed away for his 27-year-old strike partner to fire home as the crowd roared back into life. "We conceded the first goal at the worst time... we played a big team with experience and they punished all our mistakes, Lebanon coach Miodrag Radulovic said. "Akram Afif is one of the best players in Asia, he can even play in Europe. He's a leader of this team and with his quality he decided the game tonight." China kick off their campaign on Saturday against Tajikistan. Hong Kong return to the finals for the first time since 1968 on Sunday, when they take on the United Arab Emirates. (Reuters)