|
 |   |
|
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Multimedia Central Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities Work in Sports
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE
|  |
Back on track Lebanon, Thailand rebound with draws
BEIRUT, Lebanon (AP) -- For Lebanon and Thailand, it was a night of redemption. Trounced 4-0 by Iran in their Asian Cup opening match on Thursday, Lebanon was down by two goals only 23 minutes into their Group A match Sunday night in Beirut, but fought back heroically to get a thoroughly deserved 2-2 draw. Earlier on the night, Thailand, beaten 2-0 by Iraq on Thursday, put on a dazzling show of control and stamina but only managed a draw 1-1 against Iran, a top contender to lift the trophy. Having kept alive their hopes of advancing to the second stage, the heroes of Sunday night will clash Wednesday with only a win as the ticket for a place in the last eight for either team. A draw between Iraq and Iran in the other Group A match on Wednesday will take them to the quarterfinals, leaving Lebanon and Thailand fighting for a place as a best third-place finisher. Roared on by some 30,000 fans in the 50,000-capacity Lebanese capital's Cite Sportive (Sports City), the Lebanese were stunned by a pair of early goals from Iraqi striker Sabah Jadir. Abbas Chahrour pulled one back for Lebanon in the 28th minute, but it was not until the 77th minute that Lebanon equalized through Moussa Hjeij. The result and the host's gritty performance was exactly what Lebanon's Croatian coach Josip Skoblar needed to silence his media critics, who placed the blame squarely on his shoulders after Thursday's heavy loss to Iran. "The media talked about a disaster after the Iran game, but I assure you that my team is not disastrous," he told a news conference. "Now, we feel physically drained and we picked up a couple of injuries, but we'll be 100 per cent on Wednesday." The Lebanese media harshly criticized the four naturalized Brazilians in the Lebanon squad, with some writers saying they didn't blend with the homegrown players. One columnist even wrote that they did not deserve to wear the Lebanon shirt. Skoblar left three of the four out of the starting lineup, retaining striker Newton de Oliveira and sending in Gilberto Dos Santos to join him in the second half. It worked like magic with the local media. "Lebanon revives its hopes," said a front-page headline in Beirut's As-Safir daily. "The Lebanese squad regains its confidence," declared another in Al-Mustaqbal, another Beirut daily. The Lebanese will have to be at their very best again if they are to reach the last eight at the expense of Thailand, a side that came to this tournament without a major success to its credit except a semifinal finish in the 1998 Asian Games. They also came with caution. "I am never one to set goals," said Thailand's coach Englishman Peter Whithe. "What I do is to try to climb the ladder. You fall down on occasions, but you get up and climb a little more. Problem is: the ladder never ends."
| ||||||||||||||||||||
