Ali, meanwhile, became the first player to score nine goals at a single Asian Cup after being cleared to play just hours before kickoff following a UAE protest over his eligibility. Qatar had never before gone beyond the Asian Cup quarter-finals but they had scored 16 unanswered goals coming into the final and kept a record six clean sheets as they silenced the haters. - Outrageous strike -Japan, on the other hand, had never lost an Asian Cup final, winning the last of their record four titles in 2011. Cleverly found by Afif, Ali flicked the ball up to himself before launching into an overhead volley that left Japan goalkeeper Shuichi Gonda helpless as it flew in off the post. "I expected to score goals -- maybe three or four -- but I didn't expect to score nine."

Source: The Nation Bangkok February 01, 2019 18:56 UTC