The results of the Arab teams varied at the start of the last round of the Asian qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Today, Thursday, Saudi Arabia came from behind with a goal in the first half to a 3-1 victory over its guest, Vietnam.
Vietnam advanced with a surprising goal after 3 minutes from the start through Nguyen Quang Hai, after a mistake by Abdelilah Al-Omari.
But in the second half, the hosts benefited from the expulsion of Doi Manh Do in the 54th minute for obtaining a second warning, and Salem Al-Dosari equalized one minute later from a penalty kick.
Yasser Al-Shahrani put Saudi Arabia ahead in the 67th minute, before Saleh Al-Shehri completed the triple with a second penalty kick in the 79th minute.
Saudi Arabia scored the first 3 points in the second group, which also witnessed the return of Oman today, with a precious victory from Japan, thanks to a late goal scored by Essam Al-Sobhi two minutes before the end.
Al-Subhi deposited the ball into the net after a cross pass from the right side through Salah Al Yahyai, to surprise the hosts and seize the three points and increase pressure on Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu.
In the same group, Australia defeated China 3-0 in the match that brought the two teams together in the Qatari capital, Doha, due to the restrictions imposed in the two countries to confront the Corona pandemic.
In the first group, the Lebanese team imposed a 0-0 draw against its UAE host.
Iran leads this group after its difficult victory over its guest Syria, with a lone goal scored by Ali Reza Jahanbakhsh, after 11 minutes of the second half at Azadi Stadium in Tehran.
In the same group, Iraq drew negatively outside its home with South Korea, whose attempts to penetrate the defenses of the Dutch coach, Dick Advocaat, failed.
The first two teams in each group qualify directly for the Qatar 2022 finals, while the third-placed teams will play a playoff before the winner of them qualifies for a global playoff that may lead to a fifth Asian place in the finals.