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Ahead of the 2023 AFC Asian Cup Finals, Taher Hijjaz has previewed all six groups and provided his predictions on how the action in Qatar will unfold.
South Korea
Another clear favorite for this tournament. One can only marvel at the embarrassment of riches the Koreans have in attack.
Tottenham Hotspur’s Son Heung-min, Wolverhampton’s Hwang Hee-chan, and PSG’s Lee Kang-in are the team’s star players but they will also count upon experienced Kim Young-gwon with 103 caps with his defensive partner Bayern’s Kim Min-jae, one of the best defenders in the world.
Good luck going against that.
An experienced manager is now at the helm, Jurgen Klinsmann took Germany to the semifinals of the 2006 World Cup, won titles with Bayern Munich between 2008 and 2009, and coached the United States from 2011 to 2016. The German’s first ten games in charge of South Korea saw him win five, draw three, and lose twice with six clean sheets in those games.
Most recently, Klinsmann guided the team to wins against China and Singapore in World Cup qualification with an aggregate score of 8:0. Eleven of the players called up come from the local league, 12 play at top clubs in Europe, with two currently playing in Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Plenty of quality in multiple positions should see the team reach at least the semifinals of this year’s campaign- a feat they managed in four out of the six tournaments this century.
Jordan
A disastrous start for new coach Houcine Ammouta who has played seven games so far and has yet to register a win as Al-Nashama manager.
A trashing loss against Norway by six goals to none in a game where Haaland did not feature was followed up with a surprising loss to Azerbaijan. In October, a 3-1 loss to Iran and a penalty kick shootout to Iraq meant the Jordanian finished in last place of their own invitational tournament.
To add insult to injury, Jordan picked up only one point from six in their first two World Cup qualifiers. That was only possible courtesy of a last second goal against Tajikistan. It was followed up with a 2-0 loss at home to Saudi Arabia. Some questionable refereeing decisions denied Jordan more than one penalty kick but the consensus is this team is not up to par.
It certainly won’t help being put in a group against South Korea, Bahrain, who are the best team in Pot 3, and Malaysia with their unbelievable run of form. Can the Jordanian Messi- Musa Al-Tamari- save Jordan from an embarrassing Asian Cup campaign? He started his season with Montpellier with three goals in four games but in his last ten games, he has failed to register an assist or goal.
Both Jordanian clubs this year were knocked out of the AFC Champions League and AFC Cup at the group stage.
Experience could certainly help them get results in the group stage as the team averages 25 caps per player with Hamza Al-Dardour and Anas Bani Yaseen accounting for over 200 caps between them. Jordan might fall short due to the fact that they are in what seems to be a rebuilding phase with a new manager struggling to communicate his ideas to his players.
Bahrain
A reasonable start to Antonio Pizzi’s stint as Bahrain manager saw him nab three wins, one draw, and two losses. Under former manager Helio Sousa the team was unlucky to finish third in a 2022 World Cup qualifying group that included Iran and Iraq. The COVID-19 Pandemic allowed Iran time to regroup and they topped the group with 18 points- Bahrain finished three points back on 15 points.
At the last Asian Cup, they took the Koreans to extra time before eventually falling 2-1. This team is always under the radar, but the last cycle showed what they were capable of winning the WAFF Championship and Gulf Cup in 2019. Leading the line will be Abdulla Helal who currently plays in the Czech top flight and has ten goals for Bahrain. Alongside him is the experienced Kamil Al-Aswad who will also be counted for goals.
Al-Ahmar are a team with plenty of experience with most of their players playing in the Bahrain top division, ranked 18th in Asia. In spite of being a small country with few stars it has been able to maintain its status as a team that is in and around Asia’s Top 10. I think this Asian Cup will show that Bahrain still has the potential to shock everyone.
Malaysia
19 wins, two draws, and six losses in the past 27 games. Not bad for a team ranked 130th in the world, eh?
Yes, they do win and get results against lower ranked teams but they have proven they can also do it against higher ranked teams. Their first 2026 World Cup qualifier proved that, i3-1 down in the 72nd minute against Kyrgzstan, ranked 98th, only to mount a comeback to win the game 4-3. That was followed up with a win against Chinese Taipei to take them top of the group.
Also in the list of accomplishments: a win against India and draws against China and Syria. This team is no joke and do not be surprised if they go through this group instead of a discombobulated Jordan. All but two of their players come from the Malaysian league which is ranked 11th in Asia. The Harimau Malaya have the attacking capability with 67 goals scored between 9 of their forwards, they average 22 caps per player- and there is a balance with 26-year-old Safawi Rasid the most capped of the bunch (58 caps).
This team will be happy to finish the campaign with a third place finish- even if they don’t go to the Round of 16.
Predictions:
