Matchday Two witnessed 12 more exciting fixtures that produced 19 goals and eight wins, including Iraq’s stunning 2-1 victory against four-time champions Japan and Bahrain’s last-gasp defeat of Malaysia.

Iraq end Japan’s record run
A 2-1 defeat to Iraq on Friday saw Japan suffer their first defeat in 26 group stage fixtures in the AFC Asian Cup. Before the Group D outing in Al Rayyan, the four-time champions had the longest unbeaten streak in the group stage of the continental showpiece, winning 19 and drawing six of their last 25 matches.

The result – which was Iraq’s first win against the Samurai Blue since a 1-0 victory in the quarter-finals of the 1982 Asian Games – also snapped Hajime Moriyasu side’s 11-match winning streak in international fixtures which had begun in June 2023.

Indonesia win historic battle

Two Southeast Asian nations met in the AFC Asian Cup for the first time in 52 years when Indonesia took on Vietnam at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha on Friday and it was a first-half penalty from captain Asnawi Mangkualam that helped Shin Tae-yong’s Garuda record a decisive 1-0 win against their ASEAN rivals.

This was also only their third win in the continental competition following the 2-1 victories against Qatar in 2004 and Bahrain in 2007.

Goals hard to come by

Following a goalless draw against Lebanon on Matchday Two, China PR have now played out back-to-back 0-0 stalemates after their opener with Tajikistan also ended scoreless. The result means the Chinese are one of only five teams yet to concede; however, they are also one of just seven sides yet to score.

With Tajikistan and Lebanon also finding goals hard to come by, the two points have China sitting in second place in Group A ahead of their final outing against table-toppers Qatar. With their destiny in their own hands, the East Asians will hope to remain solid at the back while also rediscovering their scoring touch up front.

Prolific scorers

Five players have so far scored in back-to-back group stage fixtures. They are Sultan Adil (United Arab Emirates), Jackson Irvine (Australia), Mehdi Ghayedi (IR Iran), Aymen Hussein (Iraq) and Akram Afif (Qatar).

Hussein and Afif are the tournament’s leading scorers with three goals apiece, with the Iraqi striker’s double against Japan sealing the biggest shock of the tournament so far.