Off the wire
• 1st LD: Armed men gun down district police chief in northern Afghan province  • (Sports) China begins Asian Cup campaign with crucial victory over Saudi Arabia  • 3rd LD Writethru: SpaceX launches cargo mission, rocket recovery test seems failed  • Libyan warring parties agree to hold new talks in Geneva  • School deputy principal executed for kidnapping, killing girl  • (Sports Focus) China begins Asian Cup campaign with crucial victory over Saudi Arabia  • Roundup: Afghan police kill 12 Taliban militants, 9 insurgents surrender  • Results of China vs Saudi Arabia at Asian Cup  • Results of women's 3,000m in Asian Single Distances Speed Skating  • Venezuela president in Iran for talks on boosting ties  
You are here: 　 Home

Late freekick gifts China win over Saudi Arabia at Asian Cup

Xinhua, January 10, 2015 Adjust font size:

Yu Hai's 80-min freekick helped China beat Saudi Arabia 1-0 at their first Group B game at the AFC Asian Cup at the Brisbane Stadium on Saturday, where thousands of Chinese fans kept cheering for them throughout the match.

Yu Hai failed to score as the lone striker for the first half, and was switched to the left midfielder position after the interval. He should have been replaced by Liu Binbin in the 78th minute when left back Mei Fang suddenly had a cramp and coach Alain Perrin had to bring on Jiang Zhipeng. Yu Hai proved his scoring ability and his luck two minutes later. The speedy winger bent a freekick in front of the edge of the box and the ball went into the corner of the far post after an obvious deflection by hitting the wall.

Wang Dalei was another hero for the game as the 26-year-old keeper saved a crucial penalty on 61 minutes. Naif Hazazi got a disputable penalty from a duel with central back Ren Hang after receiving a through pass from the midfield. However, Wang, who is on birthday today, celebrated it with a nice diving save and hit out the ball with his knees.

Alain Perrin started with his habitual 4231 formation, while the Saudis used the same formation. But the Green Falcons got several blows before the game as their ace striker, the reigning Asian Player of the Year left the continent's showpiece event for an old injury, which recurred during the friendly against South Korea on Jan. 4. And the Saudis got further disadvantage as their playmaker Taiseer Al Jassam and left winger Fhad Almu Wallad had to be absent for this game for different reasons.

China took the upper hand in the first half with some sharp forays from the flanks. Right midfielder Ji Xiang provided three crosses to test the Saudi defence, before Wu Xi squandered the most threatening chance before the break in the 42nd minute. Wu latched on to a nice pass from Hao Junmin in front of the area and rounded a sliding defender to cut into the box, only to find his diagonal low shot go just wide of the near post.

The Green Falcons changed the passive situation in the second period with some good organizing and fine buildups. But after the penalty was saved, China restored their energy and created another two chances, and Yu Hai's lucky goal made the difference. Endi