Bahrain qualified for the 2024 AFC Futsal Asian Cup in fine style after they hammered Brunei 6-1 in their second Group F Qualifier match at the Khalifa Sports City Stadium last night.
The hosts’ second consecutive win, coming after they beat East Timor 1-0 last Saturday, means that they now have six points and are second in the four-team table, behind Kuwait – whom they will play tomorrow in their last Qualifier game – who also have six points and are in first place because of goal difference.
Earlier in the day, Kuwait became the first team to qualify from Group F after they notched up their second win in succession by obliterating East Timor 8-1 at the same venue, having defeated Brunei 4-2 in their first match on Saturday.
Bahrain dominated their game from the start last night as they went 1-0 up in the fifth minute, courtesy of an Ahmed Abdulnabi Hamad goal.
Just one minute later, the hosts led 2-0 with Falah Abbas Yusuf managing to outwit the Brunei goalkeeper with a rocket kick that sent the ball fizzing into the back of the net.
Already under pressure, Brunei tried to hold their own in the face of relentless attacks by the Bahraini forwards.
A strong counter-attack in the 14th minute paid dividends but Brunei had Bahrain’s Radhi Alsandi to thank for getting up on the scoreboard because he inadvertently scored an own goal.
The action heated up further over the next six minutes but neither side managed to add to their totals as the 20-minute first half came to a close with Bahrain leading 2-1.
Brunei’s intensity appeared to lessen as the second half began and Bahrain made it 3-1 thanks to a Jassam Saleh Annan goal with 10 minutes left on the clock.
With Brunei’s defence in disarray, it was only a matter of time before the hosts scored again and Saleh Ahmed Sanjar duly obliged in the 33rd minute with the scoreboard showing Bahrain leading 4-1 and slightly more than six minutes to go till the final buzzer.
Brunei were really struggling now but somehow managed to prevent any further goals until Salman Maula Muhammad got one past their goalkeeper to make it 5-1 for Bahrain with just one minute left in the game.
Sanjar, then, scored his second goal of the evening to ensure a thumping 6-1 victory for Bahrain and a slot in the Asian Cup which is scheduled for next April in Thailand.
Meanwhile, Kuwait were in imperious form against East Timor in the afternoon as they raced to a 3-0 lead just nine minutes into the match.
By the break, they led 5-1 and, although East Timor managed to prevent any more goals for the first 12 minutes of the second half, Kuwait scored three in the last eight minutes of the game to seal a most impressive win.
Both Bahrain and Kuwait will be keen to close off their respective campaigns in Group F of the 2024 AFC Futsal Asian Cup Qualifiers with a victory in their encounter tomorrow to ensure that they head into the main tournament as the table-toppers from their group.
Thirty teams in eight groups – six of four teams and two comprising three each – are competing in centralised locations around the continent to determine which 15 teams will join Thailand, who have already qualified by virtue of being the hosts, in the Asian Cup.
The top teams in each group qualify automatically for the main tournament along with the seven best-ranked runners-up.