A guaranteed place in the last 16 of the Asian Cup will be at stake on Thursday when Jordan and Bahrain square off at Khalifa International Stadium.

The Chivalrous Ones moved to the top of Group E thanks to a 2-2 draw versus South Korea, putting them a point above Bahrain, who are third following a 1-0 triumph over Malaysia.

Match preview

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Jordan were minutes away from a historic victory against the Koreans on matchday two but ultimately could not hang on, scoring an own-goal in stoppage time.

While they were that close to assuring themselves a second successive appearance in the knockout stage of this tournament, Saturday was the first time they came back to earn a result at the Asian Cup after conceding the opening goal since 2011 (2-1 win over Syria).

A victory on Thursday would not only guarantee their place in the last 16 for a second successive Asian Cup campaign, but it would also mean they finish top of their group on successive occasions.

The Jordanians have never lost a match in this competition when scoring multiple goals while never winning when conceding more than once.

Hussein Ammouta's men enter this contest with just one defeat in four matches played this year, suffering a blowout loss to Japan on January 9 (6-1).

Thursday will be their first meeting with Bahrain since 2021, with the Jordanians winning the last two encounters against them by a 2-1 score.

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Patience is a virtue, and that paid off for Bahrain on matchday two, as they scored in the fifth minute of injury time to collect a hard-fought triumph.

It means, at the very least, they will finish third in their group and have a shot at the knockout stage, currently the highest-seeded third-place side in this tournament.

A victory on Thursday would not only assure themselves a spot in the knockout stage for the second consecutive time in this competition, but they would also top their group for the first time.

Bahrain have won their last four games in which they drew first blood, while they have lost their previous three fixtures when conceding the opening goal.

Juan Antonio Pizzi has not seen his side score an opening half goal in this competition, something Bahrain have not done at the Asian Cup since defeating Qatar in their final 2015 group fixture (2-1).

Their last seven matches against Jordan have been decided by a goal or fewer, with Bahrain winning on only two occasions, most recently in August 2019 (1-0).

Team News

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We saw one new face in the Jordan starting 11 on matchday two, with Rajaei Ayed coming into the lineup in place of Noor Al-Rawabdeh.

Ammouta gave three newcomers their first appearance of the 2023 Asian Cup on Saturday, with Ibrahim Sadeh, Anas Al-Awadat and Fadi Awad all coming on as substitutes.

An own-goal from Park Yong-woo put them on level terms with South Korea over the weekend, Yazan Al-Naimat netted his first of the competition, though an own-goal from Yazan Al-Arab cost them an additional two points.

The Red Devils were without Amine Benaddi on Saturday after the Bahrain defender was hurt in their opening fixture against South Korea.

Sayed Baqer was the only newcomer in the opening lineup on matchday two, starting in defence in place of Benaddi, while Ali Hassan Isa and Abdullah Al-Khalasi made their first appearances of the competition from the substitutes bench.

A 95th-minute strike by Ali Madan gave Bahrain a dramatic victory over Malaysia, with Ebrahim Lutfalla only having to make one stop for the clean sheet.

Jordan possible starting lineup:
Layla; Nasib, Al-Arab, Al-Ajalin; Haddad, Sadeh, Ayed, Al-Mardi; Al-Taamari, Al-Naimat, Olwan

Bahrain possible starting lineup:
Lutfalla; Adel, Baqer, Al Hayam, Ali; Al-Hardan, Isa; Madan, Helal, Marhoon; Al-Hashsash

We say: Jordan 1-1 Bahrain

There is little to choose between these evenly matched sides, and this matchup could go either way, though we do not expect either team to find a decisive breakthrough on Thursday.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

Written by
Joel Lefevre

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