Qatar Eliminated from Asian Cup with Loss to Iran

Sydney, January 15 (QNA) - Qatar national football team crashed out of the Asian Cup in Australia after losing 1-0 in their second group game against Iran on Thursday. The only goal of the game was scored on 52 minutes by Iranian forward Sardar Azmoun with the defeat keeping The Maroon in the bottom of the group as they failed to register any point in the tournament so far following a 4-1 loss to UAE in the opening game. UAE and Iran will compete for the group's winning spot when they play on Monday while Qatar and Bahrain play out a consolation game that has no effect on the qualification race as the Qatari side exit from the group stage in a repeat of their elimination from the 2007 edition. Speaking after today's game, head coach Djamel Belmadi said his players did their best, adding that he is proud of his young players especially as they faced a highly-experienced side in the tournament. "Our team learned a lot in the Asian Cup," Belmadi said in the post-match press conference, adding that players did better than the first game but the final result was not in their favor. The Maroon coach said the players gained huge experience from the tournament in which most of them participated for the first time and will benefit from playing against strong Asian sides. (QNA)