Qatar Football AssociationNational Teams | First Team
14.01.2019 2:10 in :

Al Ain: Al Duhail striker Almoez Ali stole the limelight with four superb goals to earn Qatar a big 6-0 win ovee DPR Korea  as Felix Sanchez’s side moved to the top of the Group E standings and into the knockout stage of the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019.

Ali hit two in the first half and two more in the second to go top of the goalscorers’ charts with five altogether, as the 2022 World Cup hosts safely reached the round of 16.

The tiny attendance of roughly 300 in the 16,000-capacity venue was dominated by two small groups of North Korean fans who sporadically cheered and waved flags.

In the unusual conditions, North Korea were guilty of ball-watching twice early on as Qatar went 2-0 up within 11 minutes thanks to Ali’s sharp finishing.

Ali had time to control Akram Afif’s cross from the left and bury his shot on nine minutes, and he then clipped in Hasan Al-Haydos’s ball from the right two minutes later.

Qatar refused to relent as they sought to boost their goal difference ahead of their crucial meeting with Saudi Arabia, with Ali completing his hat trick 10 minutes into the second half with an easy finish after Afif’s perfectly weighted through ball.

The 22-year-old added further misery for DPR Korea five minutes later when he linked up again with Afif, who led a rapid-fire counterattack for the Qataris before rolling the ball through to Ali and he smashed his shot across Ri Myung Guk and inside the far post.

Ali turned provider in the 68th minute when his pass allowed Hassan to storm through the DPR Korea defence and slot home Qatar’s sixth and the east Asian side’s misery was compounded in injury time when Jong Il Gwan was sent off for second bookable offence.

Just before half-time, it was too easy for Qatar once again as Afif hoisted a hopeful ball to the far post and Boualem Khouki climbed above his marker to head it in.

Ali completed the Asian Cup’s first hat-trick 10 minutes after half-time, when he coolly dinked the ball over goalkeeper Kim Myong Guk after Afif’s slide-rule pass into the box.