Qatar begin Asian Cup defense with win over Lebanon as Afif steals show

Qatar kicked off their defense of the AFC Asian Cup with a 3-0 win over Lebanon in the opener in Doha on Friday.

An unmarked Akram Afif opened the scoring for the hosts after a pass from Almoez Ali on the stroke of halftime. Ali, who was the tournament's top scorer with nine goals in 2019, doubled the lead for his side in the 56th minute heading comfortably home a cross from Mohammed Waad from the left. Afif sealed Qatar's victory in stoppage time as he pounced on a botched clearance and easily accelerated past a tiring Lebanonese defense to fire home.

"Akram was named the most valuable player of the match, he's a very high-quality player and he deserves that," said Qatar coach Marquez Lopez.

The hosts dominated the opening stages but Lebanon slowly found their footing, with veteran skipper Hassan Maatouk firing a warning shot straight at Qatar goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham. Ali had a goal ruled for offside, while Afif was the busiest player in the final third, staying two steps ahead of the Lebanon defence by finding space and creating plenty of chances while the playmaker also saw a header graze the crossbar.

"We conceded the first goal at the worst time... we played a big team with experience and they punished all our mistakes," said Lebanon coach Miodrag Radulovic.

"Akram Afif is one of the best players in Asia, he can even play in Europe. He's a leader of this team and with his quality he decided the game tonight," he added. 

The victory gave home fans some solace after Qatar lost all three World Cup group games in 2022, but Afif said they have already banished those demons from 13 months ago.

"We are proud we played in the World Cup... We played well but we've forgotten about the World Cup and even 2019," he said. "It's a new day, every day is a chance to compete to lift the cup."

China and Tajikistan play the other Group A match on Saturday. The tournament features 24 teams in six groups in the preliminary round.

(With input from Reuters)