#RoadToRussia, golden three points to stay in the game
DOHA: Striker Hassan Al Haydos emerged a national hero on Tuesday as Qatar beat Syria 1-0 in their 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying match.
Al Haydos converted a penalty kick in the 37th minute as Qatar picked up their first points in four Asian Zone qualifying matches.
The Asian Zone match was played at a packed Al Sadd Stadium.
Syria were clearly the defensive side and employed their famous ‘defensive’ tactics.
In their first actual threatening move, Qatar striker Mohammed Kasola jumped high in the air but his snap-header flew past the Syrian goalmouth without causing any damage in the 19th minute.
In the 36th minute, striker Al Haydos dribbled past Moayad Al Ajan and charged into the Syria box where Zaheera Al Medani brought down the Qatar forward with a needless tackle.
The referee promptly pointed to the spot kick which was expertly converted by Al Haydos, aiming for the right of the Syrian goalkeeper Ibrahim Alma.
It was Al Haydos’ second consecutive goal off a penalty kick. He scored against Korea also last week.
Coach Fossati celebrated the goal with pumped fists.
After a string of hard tackles in the second half – when the home team dominated the proceedings – Qatar held on to the slender lead to take their first points.
The Qatar players walked around the Al Sadd Stadium pitch to thank their fans for the support.
Qatar players will now return to their QSL sides.
