Iran downs Qatar 1-0 in WCup qualifying

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Iran beat Qatar 1-0 on Tuesday to revive its 2014 World Cup campaign and almost certainly dash the Qataris' hopes of qualifying.

After a sluggish first half, Iran dominated possession in the second and it paid off in the 66th minute when striker Rez Ghoochannejhad Nournia pounced on a deflection from midfielder Mojtaba Jabari and slotted home the winner.

Nournia almost doubled Iran's lead in the 81st but his effort was thwarted by Qatar goalkeeper Qasem Burhan.

The victory left third-place Iran a point behind Uzbekistan and South Korea in Group A in the fight for one of the two automatic qualifying spots with two rounds left. Qatar was four points behind the leaders and three adrift of Iran but only has one match remaining.

"This was a very good game, very intense and very close," Iran's assistant coach Antonio Simoes said. "Overall, I think in the end Iran deserved this win."

However, Simoes said there was little time for celebrating, with Iran knowing it must win its remaining two matches — against Lebanon and South Korea — to ensure it reaches Brazil.

"Today was a very good victory but we are already thinking about our next match against Lebanon," he said.

Qatar dominated the early possession and almost took the lead just after the half-hour mark when Khlafan Ibrahim slipped the ball into the path of Hasan Al Haydos, whose shot hit the crossbar of an open goal. A few minutes later, Abdelkarim Hassan dodged a defender just outside the area but fired his shot just wide for the 2022 World Cup hosts.

Iran started pressing toward the end of the half and twice went close to scoring. Masoud Shojaei's free kick almost caught out Burhan, only for the goalkeeper to tip the ball to safety. The resulting corner gave Nournia the chance to send a header toward goal but Burhan was able to pull off an acrobatic save.

Qatar coach Fahad Thani lamented the fact that his side couldn't convert its early chances and said the team struggled in the second half without its top scorer Sebastian Soria — who was suspended.

"It was a tight game and we faced a well-organized team, a very strong team," Thani said. "We tried to control the game and we did in the first half. But we weren't successful in scoring goals."

Thani also contended Qatar should have had a penalty in stoppage time when captain Bilal Mohammed collided with an Iran player in the area.

The match was played amid growing tensions between Iran and Qatar, with the two governments on opposing sides of the Syrian conflict. Iran backs the regime and Qatar the rebels.

Security was tight at the match, but there was little sign of the simmering dispute among the boisterous Qatari and Iranian fans.