Jordan 1-3 Qatar: Afif's hat-trick of penalties sees Asian Cup hosts retain title

Qatar retained the Asian Cup title as Akram Afif scored a hat-trick of penalties to seal a 3-1 win over Jordan in Saturday's final.

Afif kept his cool three times from 12 yards at Lusail Stadium, completing his first international hat-trick, and becoming the first player to score one in the final of an Asian Cup.

Yazan Al Naimat had brilliantly dragged maiden finalists Jordan level, cancelling out the first of Afif's spot-kicks, in the 67th minute.

Yet with the help of VAR, referee Ming Na rightly awarded a further two penalties the hosts' way, with Afif's composure ensuring Qatar became the first team since Japan in 2004 to win successive Asian Cup titles.

Afif a history maker

No player had scored a hat-trick in an Asian Cup final before, but Afif etched his name into the history books in style.

Sure, all of those goals might have come from the spot, but the pressure on Qatar's star player was enormous and, as he did in 2019, he delivered.

Afif has now played a direct role in 22 goals in the Asian Cup since the start of the 2019 edition – nine goals, 13 assists.

His haul also saw him secure the tournament's Golden Boot, as he moved onto eight goals, with three of those having been crucial openers.

Afif is a special talent and he fittingly proved decisive in Qatar's big moment on home soil.

Qatar the new Asian Cup specialists

Are Qatar the best team in Asia on paper? No. Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia – all could lay claim to having much stronger squads, while Iran and Australia were also contenders for glory.

Yet Qatar just seem to know how to get the job done at this tournament, and given their failure on home soil in the 2022 World Cup, this was a much-needed turnaround for the Gulf state's national team.

Credit must go to coach Marquez Lopez, who only took charge late last year.

Qatar have now avoided defeated in their last 11 Asian Cup matches after scoring the first goal, a run that dates back to January 2015, while they have also netted in 15 straight games and gone unbeaten across the last two tournaments.

While Jordan will be disappointed to come up short on their first appearance in an Asian Cup final, they can reflect on a fine month in Qatar that included a famous semi-final win over South Korea.

Ill-discipline costs Jordan

Referee Ma had awarded two penalties at the Asian Cup prior to the final and the official was right to take that tally to five by the end of play.

Afif craftily got his body between the ball and Nasib for Qatar's first spot-kick, and Jordan conceded another when VAR spotted a clear infringement from Mahmoud Al Mardi, whose foul on Ismaeel Mohammad was initially missed by the on-field referee.

That came just after Jordan had hauled themselves level thanks to a quite sensational finish from Al Naimat, who slammed home from inside the area after spectacularly taking a cross under his spell for his fourth goal of the tournament.

Qatar goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham had kept Jordan, who gave a fine account of themselves, at bay before then, pulling off some fantastic stops to deny Ehsan Haddad, Yazan Al Arab and Musa Al-Taamari, while Ali Olwan went close with a deft flick.

Referee Ma made a correct decision not to send Al Naimat off late on following a VAR check, but Hussein Ammouta's side fell foul of the technology again when Afif was adjudged to have stayed onside before he was taken out by goalkeeper Yazeed Abulaila. It moved Jordan clear of Vietnam for the most penalties conceded (four) at this edition of the tournament.

The penalties weighted the expected goals heavily in Qatar's favour, of course, with the champions finishing with 2.66 to Jordan's 1.38. The teams managed 24 shots (16 from Jordan, eight from Qatar, the hosts' lowest total this tournament) between them in an entertaining final befitting of what has been an enthralling competition.