Group E of the 2019 AFC Asian Cup took place from 8 to 17 January 2019. The group consisted of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Lebanon and North Korea. The top two teams, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, advanced to the round of 16. However, third-placed Lebanon missed out qualification to the knockout stage by fair play points to Vietnam.
Saudi Arabia were the only former champions in the group, having won three Asian Cup titles in 1984, 1988 and 1996.
Teams Draw position Team Zone Method ofqualification Date ofqualification Finalsappearance Lastappearance Previous bestperformance FIFA Rankings April 2018 December 2018 E1 WAFF 10th 2015 (group stage) Winners (1984, 1988, 1996) 70 69 E2 WAFF 10th 2015 (group stage) Quarter-finals (2000, 2011) 101 93 E3 WAFF 2nd 2000 (group stage) Group stage (2000) 82 81 E4 EAFF 5th 2015 (group stage) Fourth place (1980) 112 109
Notes
Standings
In the round of 16: The winners of Group E, Qatar, advanced to play the runners-up of Group D, Iraq. The runners-up of Group E, Saudi Arabia, advanced to play the winners of Group F, Japan.
Matches All times listed are GST (UTC+4).
Saudi Arabia vs North Korea The first chance of the game came in the 13th minute through Abdulaziz Al-Bishi’s left-footed strike which just missed the target. In the 28th minute, Hattan Bahebri dribbled past Ri Il-jin and sent a curler from the left to give Saudi Arabia the lead. Housain Al-Mogahwi’s free kick from just outside the box sailed into the box and Mohammed Al-Fatil diverted it into the net with a back-heel to double Saudi Arabia’s advantage. Just a minute before the break, Han Kwang-song received a second yellow card for a tackle on Al-Mogahwi. North Korea were reduced to 10 men but they came close to scoring in the 64th minute through captain Jong Il-gwan. However, the Saudi defenders regrouped to deny him. Moments later, Saudi Arabia had a missed opportunity, when Fahad Al-Muwallad side-stepped defender Kim Chol-bom and goalkeeper Ri Myong-guk but his shot flew wide. In the 70th minute, Salem Al-Dawsari was left unmarked and the Saudi captain made no mistake from the centre of the box to make it 3–0. In the 87th minute, defender Kim Song-gi failed to clear Hamdan Al-Shamrani’s cross into the box and Al-Muwallad slammed the ball into the back of the net to seal Saudi Arabia’s first opening AFC Asian Cup match win since they emerged champions in 1996.
GK 21Mohammed Al-OwaisRB 2 Mohammed Al-BreikCB 4 Ali Al-BulaihiCB 23Mohammed Al-FatilLB 13Yasser Al-Shahrani DM 14Abdullah OtayfCM 16Housain Al-MogahwiCM 20Abdulaziz Al-Bishi RW 11Hattan Bahebri LW 10Salem Al-Dawsari (c) CF 19Fahad Al-MuwalladSubstitutions:MF 18Abdulrahman Ghareeb FW 9 Mohammed Al-Saiari DF 12Hamdan Al-Shamrani Manager: Juan Antonio Pizzi GK 1 Ri Myong-gukRB 5 An Song-il CB 4 Kim Song-giCB 16Ri Yong-jik LB 3 Jang Kuk-chol RM 23Ri Il-jin CM 15Ri Un-cholLM 2 Kim Chol-bom AM 7 Han Kwang-song AM 11Jong Il-gwan (c) CF 10Pak Kwang-ryongSubstitutions:MF 12Kim Kyong-hun DF 17Ri Chang-ho FW 19Rim Kwang-hyok Manager:Kim Yong-jun
Man of the Match: Salem Al-Dawsari (Saudi Arabia)
Assistant referees: Matthew Cream (Australia) Anton Shchetinin (Australia) Fourth official: Sergei Grishchenko (Kyrgyzstan) Additional assistant referees: Valentin Kovalenko (Uzbekistan) Chris Beath (Australia)
Qatar vs Lebanon
In the 37th minute, Ali Hamam raced off to celebrate with his teammates after slotting Hassan Maatouk's corner into the Qatari goal, only for the referee to controversially blow the whistle for a foul on Tarek Salman. Maatouk pulled the trigger on an effort of his own just before half-time, but his scissor kick flew high over the bar. Two minutes after the hour mark, 2018 AFC Player of the Year Abdelkarim Hassan was introduced from the bench for Abdulkarim Al-Ali and within three minutes, the Qataris took the lead from Bassam Al-Rawi's strike from a free kick. The defender sent a dipping, curling right-footed effort over the wall and beyond the outstretched hand of Mehdi Khalil. Qatar added a second with 11 minutes remaining. Hassan's driving run created space for Akram Afif and, when the winger received the ball, his centre found Abdulaziz Hatem, whose shot was saved by Khalil. But Almoez Ali was on hand to roll the ball into the empty net to ensure a winning start to the campaign for Qatar.
GK 1 Saad Al-SheebCB 2 Ró-RóCB 4 Tarek SalmanCB 15Bassam Al-RawiRM 23Assim MadiboCM 16Boualem KhoukhiCM 12Karim Boudiaf LM 18Abdulkarim Al-Ali RF 10Hassan Al-Haydos (c) CF 19Almoez AliLF 11Akram AfifSubstitutions:MF 6 Abdulaziz Hatem DF 3 Abdelkarim Hassan FW 7 Ahmed Alaaeldin Manager: Félix Sánchez GK 1 Mehdi KhalilRB 11Alexander Michel Melki CB 3 Mootaz El Jounaidi CB 6 Joan OumariLB 13Felix Michel Melki DM 15Haytham FaourRM 19Ali HamamLM 18Walid IsmailAM 22Bassel JradiCF 9 Hilal El-HelweCF 7 Hassan Maatouk (c) Substitutions:MF 14Nader Matar MF 5 Samir Ayass MF 10Mohamad Haidar Manager: Miodrag Radulović
Man of the Match: Assim Madibo (Qatar)
Assistant referees: Huo Weiming (China PR) Cao Yi (China PR) Fourth official: Ronnie Koh Min Kiat (Singapore) Additional assistant referees: Fu Ming (China PR) Liu Kwok Man (Hong Kong)
Lebanon vs Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia found their breakthrough in the 12th minute when they latched onto a defensive mistake. Lebanon’s Joan Oumari’s back pass deflected off teammate Alexander Michel Melki’s left boot. The ball landed near Saudi Arabia’s Fahad Al-Muwallad, who half-volleyed home from close range. Oumari failed to keep his header down in the 16th minute, while Felix Michel Melki just missed Hassan Maatouk’s free kick eight minutes later. After the break, Hattan Bahebri took a chance from almost 30 yards out which forced a save from goalkeeper Mehdi Khalil. Bahebri made an assist in the 67th minute, when his cross into the box found Housain Al-Mogahwi, who made it 2–0. This win earned Saudi Arabia a ticket to the round of sixteen for the first time since the 2007 edition, in which Saudi Arabia finished runners-up.
GK 1 Mehdi KhalilRB 11Alexander Michel MelkiCB 2 Kassem El ZeinCB 3 Mootaz El JounaidiCB 6 Joan OumariLB 13Felix Michel Melki DM 15Haytham Faour RM 19Ali HamamLM 7 Hassan Maatouk (c) AM 10Mohamad Haidar CF 9 Hilal El-Helwe Substitutions:FW 20Rabih Ataya MF 14Nader Matar DF 17Mohamed Zein Tahan Manager: Miodrag Radulović GK 21Mohammed Al-OwaisRB 2 Mohammed Al-BreikCB 23Mohammed Al-FatilCB 4 Ali Al-BulaihiLB 12Hamdan Al-ShamraniDM 14Abdullah Otayf CM 20Abdulaziz Al-Bishi CM 16Housain Al-MogahwiRW 11Hattan BahebriLW 10Salem Al-Dawsari (c) CF 19Fahad Al-Muwallad Substitutions:MF 8 Yahya Al-Shehri MF 18Abdulrahman Ghareeb MF 15Ibrahim Ghaleb Manager: Juan Antonio Pizzi
Man of the Match: Hattan Bahebri (Saudi Arabia)
Assistant referees: Abu Bakar Al-Amri (Oman) Rashid Al-Ghaithi (Oman) Fourth official: Abdukhamidullo Rasulov (Uzbekistan) Additional assistant referees: Mohanad Qassim (Iraq) Mohd Amirul Izwan Yaacob (Malaysia)
North Korea vs Qatar Qatar were in front in the ninth minute when Akram Afif glided past Sim Hyon-jin before delivering a low cross to Almoez Ali, who struck past Ri Myong-guk. Qatar doubled their lead two minutes later, when Abdelkarim Hassan’s ball found Hassan Al-Haydos, whose low centre was struck in the goal from close range by Ali. Ri Un-chol tried from outside the area, but his drive narrowly failed to find the top corner. With just two minutes remaining in the first half, Afif lifted the ball high over the advancing Myong-guk and Boualem Khoukhi headed in from close range. Ali completed his hat-trick 10 minutes into the second half with a finish from Afif’s through ball. Five minutes later, Afif led a counter-attack before rolling the ball through to Ali, who smashed his shot across Myong-guk and inside the far post. Ali turned provider in the 68th minute when his pass allowed Hassan to storm through the North Korean defence and slot home Qatar’s sixth. The East Asian side’s misery was compounded in the last minute when Jong Il-gwan was shown a second yellow card.
It was North Korea’s heaviest ever defeat at the Asian Cup, surpassing their previous 0–4 defeat to Saudi Arabia in their opening 2019 Asian Cup match. Qatar’s win enabled them to progress to the knockout stages for the first time since the 2011 edition that they hosted. Controversy rose around the almost empty stadium as very few fans were allowed to enter.
GK 1 Ri Myong-gukCB 13Sim Hyon-jinCB 4 Kim Song-gi CB 2 Kim Chol-bomRM 23Ri Il-jin CM 15Ri Un-chol LM 12Kim Kyong-hunRW 9 Kim Yong-il AM 11Jong Il-gwan (c) LW 19Rim Kwang-hyok CF 10Pak Kwang-ryong Substitutions:MF 8 Ri Hyok-chol MF 16Ri Yong-jik DF 6 Ri Thong-il Manager:Kim Yong-jun GK 1 Saad Al-SheebRB 2 Ró-Ró CB 15Bassam Al-RawiCB 4 Tarek SalmanLB 3 Abdelkarim Hassan CM 23Assim Madibo CM 6 Abdulaziz HatemRW 10Hassan Al-Haydos (c)AM 16Boualem KhoukhiLW 11Akram AfifCF 19Almoez AliSubstitutions:MF 5 Ahmed Fatehi DF 8 Hamid Ismail MF 20Ali Afif Manager: Félix Sánchez
Man of the Match: Almoez Ali (Qatar)
Assistant referees: Palitha Hemathunga (Sri Lanka) Jakhongir Saidov (Uzbekistan) Fourth official: Matthew Cream (Australia) Additional assistant referees: Valentin Kovalenko (Uzbekistan) Ilgiz Tantashev (Uzbekistan)
Saudi Arabia vs Qatar Mohammed Al-Owais parried away Boualem Khoukhi's drive on 16 minutes in the first genuine threat to either goal. Housain Al-Mogahwi shot over the bar for Saudi Arabia following Yahya Al-Shehri's probing run and cross, before Fahad Al-Muwallad struck an upright with Qatar goalkeeper Saad Al-Sheeb beaten. Hassan Al-Haydos' 42nd minute penalty was saved by Al-Owais. However, minutes later, Abdulaziz Hatem's through ball found Almoez Ali who converted to open the scoring on the stroke of half-time. Within five minutes of the restart Hattan Bahebri forced Al-Sheeb into a save. Bahebri's effort from 15 yards fizzed narrowly over the bar on 73 minutes. Qatar extended their lead with 10 minutes remaining, when Ali leaped to thump home a header from Hatem's corner. It proved to be the final genuine goalmouth action as Qatar held on to seal another three points.
The match was dubbed the "Blockade Derby", in reference to the diplomatic disputes between the two nations. However, there was no on-field incidents and the match ended in a friendly atmosphere.
GK 21Mohammed Al-OwaisRB 2 Mohammed Al-BreikCB 4 Ali Al-Bulaihi CB 23Mohammed Al-FatilLB 12Hamdan Al-ShamraniDM 14Abdullah Otayf CM 8 Yahya Al-Shehri (c)CM 16Housain Al-MogahwiRW 11Hattan BahebriLW 19Fahad Al-Muwallad CF 18Abdulrahman Ghareeb Substitutions:FW 9 Mohammed Al-Saiari MF 6 Ayman Al-Khulaif MF 7 Nooh Al-Mousa Manager: Juan Antonio Pizzi GK 1 Saad Al-SheebRB 2 Ró-RóCB 15Bassam Al-RawiCB 4 Tarek SalmanLB 3 Abdelkarim HassanCM 6 Abdulaziz Hatem CM 23Assim Madibo CM 16Boualem KhoukhiRF 10Hassan Al-Haydos (c) CF 19Almoez Ali LF 11Akram AfifSubstitutions:MF 14Salem Al-Hajri MF 12Karim Boudiaf FW 7 Ahmed Alaaeldin Manager: Félix Sánchez
Man of the Match: Almoez Ali (Qatar)
Assistant referees: Yoon Kwang-yeol (South Korea) Park Sang-jun (South Korea) Fourth official: Cao Yi (China PR) Additional assistant referees: Ko Hyung-jin (South Korea) Fu Ming (China PR)
Lebanon vs North Korea