The 2012 AFC U16 Championship qualifiers Group B saw Pakistan defy all odds, and expectations, to beat Afghanistan 3-1 at Ali Sabah al-Salem Stadium in Kuwait City in a late night kick off (2330 PST). The win brought life back into Pakistan’s chances of qualifying for the next round of the championship.
After disappointing results against Kuwait and UAE U16 sides, Pakistan went into this game facing a daunting task of overcoming an impressive and solid Afghanistan side that had drawn against all the strong sides and had beaten Yemen 2 days back. Sure enough, Pakistan played with caution and looked to hit Afghanistan on the break.
Despite having the possession advantage, Afghanistan’s defence failed them as Pakistan suddenly pounced just before half-time when Muhammad Bilal headed in a bouncing long-ball past the Afghan goalie Abdullah Qader to shockingly put his side 1-0 up. Afghanistan responded by going on all out attack as they found gaps in Pak midfield and nervy defence.
Afghanistan were then awarded a dubious penalty in 55th minute following a push by defender Rashid Noor on an Afghan striker in the box. Mohammad Amin then duly equalised for Afghanistan as they stepped up the pressure to take the lead but some poor shot selection, and an offside meant it remained a tense 1-1 with Pakistan desperate for some breathing space.
Mansoor Khan then stunned the Afghan side in 74th minute when he selfishly side-stepped 3 Afghan defenders and volleyed in a goal for Pakistan after Afghan goalie had saved his initial shot. The goal shocked the Afghan side who despite all their efforts failed to test the opposition more, as Pak kept sniffing around for that vital counter attack.
Sure enough, Pakistan put the result beyond Afghan hands as they made it 3-1 in 84th minute thanks to another Mansoor Khan special. Observers have called this win by Pakistan U16 nothing less than a shock against Afghanistan, as it re-starts their quest for qualification to final round in 2012.
Now Pakistan require a win in their final group game against Yemen on 22 September to be certain of qualifying with a top two finish. In other results, Yemen shocked hosts Kuwait with a 2-1 win while UAE hammered Maldives 6-0 earlier in the day.
Horrible result. I mean its good for Pakistan, but even a blind person could see that there was no way that Pakistan should have won this match. Afghanistan were the much superior side. I watched the second half, and the only positives which I noticed is that our boys are good in the air and that the strikers are good on the ball.
Defence was not good. The defenders closed well, but they wouldn’t need to do so if they had been marking well in the first place. Defending by the midfielders was horrible. They were fairly well organized though. Better than some of the defending by our senior team in the past. But not too much better.
There was no passing. It was excruciating to watch. Long ball after long ball. Stray pass after stray pass. The midfield and defence must learn to keep posession.
Bilal took his goal well, although the setup was just an opportunistic long ball. Mansoor’s goal was very well taken. Excellent ball control. However, I give him an 8/10 for the goal. If he had passed instead of shooting, then it would have been a 10/10 goal. But selfishness is a characteristic of good strikers, right? He also scored the second goal, it seems. Certainly the best player in the squad. Bilal is also pretty good.
The keeping was fairly good.
The coaches must make sure that the team learns how to keep posession. However, it seems that they are just like the other domestic coaches, judging by today’s performance. I do not see how this team could have won the SAFF Cup if they played like that. I know they can play better because of that one clip of the goal against Maldives in the SAFF tourney. However, they must learn how to play like that against stronger teams. Maldives are not always going to be in the same group. The PFF must bring in a foreign coaching staff for these boys until they reach the U-19 level. They have the talent, but I am afraid that they cannot go any further with this coaching staff.
Now we must beat Yemen, otherwise we will be out. A draw is not sufficient. If we beat Yemen, then it doesn’t matter what happens with the other teams, we will be through to the finals. If we draw, then we are out, no matter what. Winning is the only option.
I think that we can beat Yemen. Yemenis are fast, but they are also short and weak. And a big reason for our win today was the short height and weakness of the Afghan boys. We will have the physical advantage over the Yemenis, but we must keep posession in order to win.
Unfortunately, based on today’s performance, I feel that the boys are not ready or capable to play in the AFC U17 Championship next year.
very true. the midfield was non-existent, the passing was atrocious, and the players were panicking. yet how on earth we managed to win 3-1 is beyond me!
didnt get to watch the game but from what i have heard the defence can defend, but yes there is no concept of keeping the ball hence hoof it long..that should come from the midfield in terms of coming deep and asking the ball..but the forward line has the ability to score and creat chance and those players like mansoor and bilal should be developed..
but its football i guess soemtime u win when u play bad and u lose when u play good like pakistan did against kuwait. they have all in their own hands now on thursday to win and qualify..
we have to remember they have beaten saff teams and lost to arabs because they had never played them before and pff we know doesnt normally have preparation camps or tours abroad so they boys could have experienced something..so all in all i’d say whatever happens on thursday the coaches should work on this team throughout next year and a half so they r fully equipped for the u19s..
I agree with most of what you said. The defence isn’t too bad, but they were giving way too much space. Not marking well. And the defending by the midfielders was atrocious. One players method of defending was to just run at the Afghan who was standing with the ball. Of course, it is an easy matter to dodge such defending. The player would run past the Afghan and then stop and seemed bewildered as to how he wasn’t able to steal the ball. I saw it happen a few times in that game, although I am not sure if it was the same player each time.
Keeping the ball requires that the players should be calm and aware while under pressure. However, yesterday some of our players were passing the ball straight to the feet of the Afghans despite having loads of time and space. And posession starts from the defence. But our defence and midfield were both playing long ball. The strikers were the only positive.
The team needs more training and investment. However, I feel that the current coaching staff has achieved all that it is capable of doing. It is now time for a foreign coaching staff. Perhaps Sharida would like to take the job?
Pakistan win was a fluke, the SAFF win was a fluke too. Afghanistan are in a war zone yet their players are still superior to Pakistan’s players. Pakistan will get hammared by Yemen. Simply the Pakistan team is not good enough at any level. The SAFF is just a mess about for other teams.
They beat India twice, Maldives and Bangladesh too…allowed 1 goal and scored a few and went unbeaten..surely not a fluke..no harm giving credit where its due…they played quite well against kuwait better than they did against afghanistan but lost so this is football soemtime u win when not deserving but lose when u have done well…funny old game football….
Pakistan coach Sajjad Mehmood said that his team played exceptionally well against tough Afghanistan.
“We played an extraordinary game,” Sajjad told ‘The News’ from Kuwait on Tuesday.
“Afghanistan had turned out to be a real threat after playing superbly against UAE, Kuwait and Yemen but the way we beat them was remarkable,” Sajjad said.
He said that his boys played according to the game plan which finally earned them a convincing triumph.
“Sensing the value of the game, we had given a certain plan to the boys and everyone played accordingly and you can see how we defeated Afghanistan,” the coach said.
“Our defence played excellently. Shehbaz Masih looked extremely well along with captain Muneer Aftab,” he remarked.
“In the middle of the game, we got the news that Yemen have beaten Kuwait. It was a turning point for us as with the result our chances of qualifying for the next year’s tournament increased. It also encouraged the team and all the boys put in their best,” Sajjad elaborated.
“After ousting Afghanistan we don’t have any option but to beat Yemen in our last match on Thursday to qualify for the next year’s slots,” Sajjad said.
The coach said that Yemen are a good side but Pakistan have the capability to beat them.
“I have seen Yemen play in this event. Their boys are skilled and play control game but we shall try to deny them much chance of playing their real game,” Sajjad concluded.
I don’t know what Sajjad Mehmood was watching, but that was not an excellent performance. If that was his game plan, then I think that he should resign. Winning is good, but you shouldn’t make your fans feel that you didn’t deserve to win.
All of you should appreciate our teams efforts and should congrats them Not disgrace them by saying they dont know how to play, if you think you know how to play better than them , then play for the country ,its that smiple