Gulf Cup: Bahrain 1 Qatar 0

A lone goal from Faouzi Aaish in the 25th minute proves enough to lift host Bahrain into the knockout stage of the Gulf Cup of Nations.

A goal from Faouzi Aaish, left, was all hosts Bahrain needed to push on through to the knockout stage of the Gulf Cup of Nations.

BAHRAIN 1

QATAR    0

Aaish 25'

Man fo the match Faouzi Aaish (Bahrain)

The fortunate hosts from Bahrain booked their spot in the last four of the Gulf Cup with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Qatar on Friday night.

Bahrain, who have yet to win the Gulf Cup, had collected just one point from their first two Group A games following a goal-less draw with Oman and a 2-1 loss to the UAE.

To qualify for the knockout stage, they needed to beat Qatar, who were on three points after their win over Oman, and hope the Omanis did not win by a bigger margin over the Emiratis.

Both wishes came true for the hosts as Faouzi Aaish's 25th-minute penalty was enough to beat Qatar, and UAE came through with a defeat of Oman.

The UAE finished at the top of the group with a 3-0 mark and will meet the winner of tonight's match between Kuwait and Saudi Arabia in the semis, while Bahrain will take on Group B toppers Iraq in the other semi-final match.

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