BAHRAIN enjoyed an impressive 4-0 victory over North Korea last night in an international friendly at the Khalifa Sports City stadium in Isa Town.
Mohammed Rumaihi, Ahmed Jumaa, Jamal Rashid and Kamel Alaswad scored for the hosts.
The friendly was part of both teams’ preparations for the AFC Asian Cup which gets underway in the UAE on January 5.
It was Bahrain’s last of a series of international friendlies played as part of their preparations for the continental competition. It was also their second successive win this week, following a 1-0 triumph over Lebanon on Thursday.
Bahrain will be taking aprt in this continental competition for the sixth time.
Competition
Bahrain are drawn in Group ‘A’ alongside tournament hosts the UAE, India and Thailand.
Group ‘B’ comprises Australia, Jordan, Palestine and Syria. Group ‘C’ features China, South Korea, Kyrgyzstan and the Philippines.
Group ‘D’ includes Iran, Iraq, Vietnam and Yemen. Group ‘E’ has North Korea, Lebanon, Qatar and Saudi Arabia Japan, Oman, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan are in Group ‘F’.
Bahrainis’ best finish was in 2004, when they claimed fourth place overall out of 16 participating teams.
In the previous edition in 2015 held in Australia, the Bahrainis failed to make it past the group stage after losing two of their three games.
Bahrain will be featuring in the inaugural match agaainst the UAE at Zayed Sports City Stadium in Abu Dhabi. on January 5.