Hosts Qatar fall to Uzbekistan in Asian Cup opener

Hosts Qatar made the worst possible start to the Asian Cup on Friday when they were beaten 2-0 by Uzbekistan who hardly had to raise their game above walking pace to secure a comfortable victory at the Khalifa Stadium.

The Central Asian side, ranked 109th in the world, five places above the 2022 World Cup hosts, took the lead in the Group A match with a superb 28-metre strike from midfielder Odil Akhmedov which flew in off the crossbar after 59 minutes.

They doubled their advantage when their skipper Server Djeparov punished a wayward defensive pass and steered the ball past stranded keeper Qasem Burhan into the empty net.

The result was a huge anti-climax for the hosts, who came closest to scoring when Fabio Cesar hit the post with a first-half free kick. It clearly did not impress the home fans who left the stadium in droves long before the final whistle.

Kuwait face China in the second Group A match of the three-week tournament on Saturday.