Bahrain held by Qatar in World Cup qualifier

Published Sep. 2, 2011 10:12 p.m. ET

foxsports

Bahrain was held to a 0-0 draw at home by Qatar on Friday in their opening match of the third round of Asian qualifiers for the 2014 World Cup.

Bahrain was clearly the more polished side in the Group E contest but failed to capitalize on a string of scoring chances.

Mahmood Abdulrahman and Ismaeel Abdullatif had Bahrain's best chances, while Sebastian Soria and Bilal Mohammed had opportunities for Qatar.

Bahrain's next qualifier is against Indonesia in Jakarta on Sept. 6, when Qatar is at home to group favorite Iran, which moved to the top of the table with a resounding 3-0 victory over Indonesia in Tehran earlier Friday.

Bahrain coach Peter Taylor, who was marking his first competitive game, was generally pleased with his side's performance.

''It was a very tight match,'' Taylor said. ''We had better chances in both halves than Qatar, and with a little bit of luck, we could have scored a goal.

''In that respect, I am very pleased with the team's effort and performance.''

Qatar's Brazilian tactician Sebastiao Lazaroni was also in charge for his first match.

''The Bahrain team started better than Qatar,'' he said. ''They created some combinations, had some good long balls and played with some quality.

''But step by step, Qatar got stronger in the match, and in the second half I believe we had better opportunities than Bahrain. It was a difficult game.''

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Line-ups:

Bahrain: Sayed Mohammed Jaffar, Mohammed Hussain, Abdulla Al Marzooqi, Saleh Abdulhameed, Hamad Rakea, Ismaeel Abdullatif, Faouzi Aaish, Salman Isa, Abdulla Ismail Omar, Rashed Al Hooti, Hussain Baba.

Qatar: Qasem Burhan, Hamad Ismail, Mohammed Kasola, Lawrence, Mohammed Omar, Fabio Cesar, Ebrahim Majed, Marcone Amaral, Mohammed El Sayed, Bilal Mohammed, Sebastian Soria.