U.A.E. Whitewashes Uzbekistan 4-1 in World Cup QualifierThe United Arab Emirates whitewashed the Uzbekistan team 4-1 in its first Asian World Cup qualifying group B match Friday in Abu Dhabi.The host team played a fast attacking game and scored through Yaser Salem, Gharib Hareb, Fahad Ali and substitute Zuhair Bakhit. The Uzbekistan eleven narrowed the margin in a breakaway move in the first half when Nikolay Shirshow beat goalkeeper Juma Rashed with a long-range shot. Yaser Salem of the home team netted the opening goal in the 21 st minute and his teammate Gharib Hareb converted a penalty in the 33rd minute to make it 2-0. But Uzbekistan's Nikolay Shirshow scored the team's lone goal four minutes later with a 40-yard strike. The home team added a third goal a minute before the interval when Fahad Ali tapped the ball in following a goalmouth scramble. Veteran Zuhair Bakhit completed the rout for the United Arab Emirates in the 85th minute. U.A.E. coach Abdulla Saqr said after the match: "It's good to make a winning start, but we have a long road ahead," he said. " The victory has shown that boys are in good spirits and want to achieve our main goal -- that's to qualify for the World Cup." |
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