Gao Tianyi (R) of China vies with Salman Al-Faraj of Saudi Arabia during the Group B match between China and Saudi Arabia of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Qualifier in Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates, March 24, 2022. (Str/Xinhua)
SHARJAH, UAE, March 25 (Xinhua) -- Zhu Chenjie scored a late penalty as China held Saudi Arabia 1-1 in their penultimate game of the 2022 FIFA World Cup Asian qualifiers here on Thursday.
Saudi Arabia had assured themselves of qualifying for the tournament before a ball had been kicked, thanks to Japan's 2-0 win over Australia earlier in the day, while China were already out of contention for a slot in the World Cup.
The Green Falcons controlled the match with 74 percent of possession and 18 shots while China only had two shots on goal.
"The gap between the two teams is obvious. My players have given all they have, and we are lucky to get one point," China head coach Li Xiaopeng said at a post-match press conference.
China defended vigorously in the first half, with Hao Junmin and Zhu being shown yellow cards.
China captain Zhang Linpeng made several critical tackles to prevent the dominant Saudi team from scoring until first-half injury time, when Saleh Al-Shehri headed home from a corner to put the Saudis in front.
China's first chance came after the interval but Zhang Yuning's goal in the 53rd minute was disallowed for offside. In the 59th minute, Gao Tianyi came off the bench and replaced Liu Binbin to make his international debut. China later made two other changes, with Yu Dabao and Jin Jingdao replacing Zhang and Xu Xin.
China's efforts finally paid off in the 82nd minute when they were awarded a penalty after a handball by Saudi Arabia. Zhu coolly converted his first goal for the national team to tie the scores.
After the equalizer, all Chinese players gathered to pay tribute to the MU5735 crash victims, and also to Chinese football legend Chen Chengda who passed away on Thursday at age 93.
"We practiced penalties before the match. Zhu showed calmness and skill, and that's the reason why I chose him," Li explained. "In fact we have some young talents in the team. They were a little nervous playing in important matches but performed well in general."
Saleh Al-Shehri had a chance to net again in injury time, but his shot from inside the box was tipped over and then ruled offside.
"Of course we wanted to win the match to celebrate World Cup qualification. We created many chances but didn't score the second goal. We were not efficient. That's part of football. I will not blame my players. The most important is that we are going to the World Cup," said Saudi Arabia head coach Herve Renard.
Renard's team, alongside with Japan, Iran and South Korea, have secured all four berths in the Asian zone to directly qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
China remain fifth in the group with six points from nine games, and now face Oman away on March 29.
"The most important is to give all we have on the pitch. We need to improve step by step," Li added. ■
Gao Tianyi (R) of China vies with Salman Al-Faraj of Saudi Arabia during the Group B match between China and Saudi Arabia of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Qualifier in Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates, March 24, 2022. (Str/Xinhua)
Liu Yang (R) of China vies with Abdulaziz Al-Beshi of Saudi Arabia during the Group B match between China and Saudi Arabia of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Qualifier in Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates, March 24, 2022. (Str/Xinhua)
Players of China react after the Group B match between China and Saudi Arabia of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Qualifier in Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates, March 24, 2022. (Str/Xinhua)
Liao Lisheng (L) of China vies with Mohamed Kanno of Saudi Arabia during the Group B match between China and Saudi Arabia of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Qualifier in Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates, March 24, 2022. (Str/Xinhua)
Players of China react after the Group B match between China and Saudi Arabia of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Qualifier in Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates, March 24, 2022. (Str/Xinhua)
Players of China react after scoring a penalty goal during the Group B match between China and Saudi Arabia of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Qualifier in Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates, March 24, 2022. (Str/Xinhua)
Players of China react after scoring a penalty goal during the Group B match between China and Saudi Arabia of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Qualifier in Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates, March 24, 2022. (Str/Xinhua)
