Six Teams Have Received Tickets To The 2024 U-23 Asian Cup Quarter-finals

JAKARTA - The 2024 U-23 Asian Cup group round is not yet complete. However, there are already six teams that have confirmed tickets to the quarter-finals.

All the Group parties have finished. Two teams strolled into the knockout phase, namely Qatar U-23 and the U-23 Indonesian national team.

The host Qatar U-23 won the group after collecting seven points from the results of two wins and one draw. Meanwhile, Garuda Muda secured a loss with a collection of six points from two wins and one defeat.

Indonesia U-23 managed to secure three points in the group's last match after beating Jordan U-23 with a landslide score of 4-1 on Sunday, April 21, 2024.

In the match at the Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, the U-23 Indonesian national team secured a two-goal advantage in the first half of the match through Marselino Ferdinand (23') and Witan Sulaeman (40').

In the second half, two goals were contributed by Marselino Ferdinand (70') and Komang Teguh (86').

Jordan U-23 got an entertainment goal. Their only goal came from Justin Hubner's own goal in the 79th minute.

This result also made history. Indonesia U-23 debut immediately stepped into the last eight of the U-23 Asian Cup.

After securing a place in the quarter-finals, the U-23 Indonesian national team is now just waiting for the opponent to be faced. South Korea or Japan will be the candidate who will meet in the match on April 25, 2024.

Meanwhile, three other groups will hold the final match on April 22 and 23, 2024. However, four teams from the two groups have confirmed tickets to the quarter-finals only through two matches.

Group B, for example, sent South Korea and Japan. Both of them won perfect points from two matches and it was impossible to catch up with the United Arab Emirates and as well as China who had not collected points.

South Korea vs Japan match in the last match of the group is only to determine who is the leader of the standings.

Then from Group D, Uzbekistan and Vietnam made it to the quarter-finals. The maximum points in the two matches made it impossible for Malaysia and Kuwait to displace because both were without points.

The final Group D party between Uzbekistan and Vietnam is only to determine who is the leader of the standings.

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, and Iraq are still competing in Group C to qualify for the knockout stages.

Currently, Saudi Arabia leads the standings with six points. Thailand stalked below it with three points. Iraq, which is in third place, collects the same points as Thailand.

In the last match Saudi Arabia will meet Iraq, while Thailand meets Tajikistan.

Saudi Arabia has indeed stepped foot in the knockout stages. Even if they lose against Iraq, they are still difficult to get evicted considering Saudi Arabia's goal difference (+7) is far from the acquisition of its competitors.

Thailand has a not good record in terms of goal difference (-3). Then, Iraq had a goal difference of 0.

That is, it will take many winning goals from the two teams if they want to kick Saudi Arabia to third.

Thus, the Group C fight was actually only focused on Thailand and Iraq. Both teams tried to get maximum points in the last match.

Iraq has a chance to displacate Thailand from the second place in the standings if they win against Saudi Arabia. Meanwhile, Thailand must win big so that Iraq's head-to-head is safe.

You see, in the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup regulations, goal difference is the main scoring point before taking into account the results of competing team meetings.

Six Teams In The Quarter-Finals Of The 2024 U-23 Asian Cup

1. Qatar

2. South Korea

3. Japan

4. Vietnam

5. Uzbekistan

6. Indonesia