FOOTBALL – BAHRAIN’S under-23 Olympic football team romped past their counterparts from Brunei Darussalam 10-0 last night to revive their chances of qualifying for the AFC U23 Asian Cup 2026.
Seven different players were on target for the Bahrainis in their second assignment in qualification’s Group H, which is currently being held in Doha, Qatar. They bounced back from a disheartening loss in their opening fixture last week against India.
Their impressive victory included a four-goal salvo within a six-minute span in the first half, when they took a commanding 5-0 lead into the break. They then continued their dominance after the re-start with five more goals.
Abdulla Al Obaidli, skipper Mubarak Mohammed, and Abdulla Al Subaie all had a brace for the nationals. Also on target were Saud Mohsen, Abdulrahman Al Khayyat, Sayed Mahmoud Al Mosawi, and Khaled Al Khalaf.
With the result, Bahrain scored their first three points of the qualifiers. They remained in third place on the Group H table with one match remaining. That will be played tomorrow against hosts Qatar in a do-or-die fixture, to be held at Doha’s Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium, scheduled for an 8pm kick-off, Bahrain time.
The Qataris were narrow 2-1 winners against 10-man India in last night’s other divisional clash. It was Qatar’s second triumph in as many outings, meaning that Bahrain must defeat the Qataris in their head-to-head to have any chance of qualifying.
The Bahrainis are hoping to finish as Group H winners or be one of the four best runners-up from the 11 qualifying pools in order to secure their berth in next year’s AFC U23 Asian Cup, set to be hosted by Saudi Arabia. The nationals hope to punch their tickets to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) competition for only the second time in its history, adding to their debut in the 2020 event held in Bangkok, Thailand.
Head coach Ali Abdulmajeed fielded a starting 11 yesterday that included goalkeeper Abdulla Fareh, Mahmood Al Bannai, Bader Al Asam, Hashem Khelaifat, Abdulla Al Qassab, Al Mosawi, Al Khalaf, Mohsen, Al Khayyat, Al Obaidli, and Mohammed.
Al Obaidli was on target twice in the first half. His first goal after only three minutes helped set the tone for the rest of the contest.
Mohsen added Bahrain’s second in the 20th minute, sparking their huge rally. Only one minute later, Al Khayyat scored to make it 3-0, and then after another two minutes on, Al Obaidli got his second. Mohammed scored Bahrain’s fourth goal in the 26th minute to complete their impressive first half and take their commanding 5-0 cushion into the interval.
Coming out of the locker room, the Bahrainis didn’t miss a beat. Mohammed added his second only three minutes in, and then Al Mosawi got in on the action a minute after the hour-mark. Khalaf was on target in the 71st to make it 8-0, and then Al Subaie applied the finishing touches, scoring in the 87th and 96th minutes.
The under-23 nationals are one of 44 Olympic teams entered in the AFC U23 Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers. Each of the 11 groups is being held in a centralised location.
Next year’s AFC U23 Asian Cup will be its seventh edition. Bahrain’s only appearance in the tournament’s past editions was in the 2020 event held in Bangkok, Thailand.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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