Pakistan 3 - 1 Suriyah (392315825)

Due to an all-day shower, 99424 paying spectators got to see a match on a pitch-turned-bog at F2 Park. Lucky Wilson was the appointed referee with assistance provided by Jaron Dronkert and Francesco Billaud. U-20 Pakistan decided to use a 3-5-2 set up. Lineup: Khurshid - Hamdani, Shahbaz, Shahadat - Hasan, Khan, Lashari, Wasif, Khaqan - Gauher, Haidar.

U-20 Suriyah tactics involved an interesting 4-4-2 combination. The following players took the field: al Hafez - Habbouche, Mashfinj, Al Sebai, Taearah - Santos, Kelawi, Hemidi, Habbouche - Ibrahim, Mando.

U-20 Suriyah immediately set off using their skill at pressing their opponents. U-20 Pakistan created a good opportunity to score 5 minutes into the match when A. Gauher's hooked ball from the left created a scuffle in front of the goal, and the visitors' defenders had a hard time clearing the ball. U-20 Pakistan broke through on the left 19 minutes into the game, with K. Hasan firing in from an acute angle to give the home side a 1 - 0 lead. R. Santos, who often relies on his speed, had a rotten day on the drenched grass. With 42 minutes gone, a long pass from the defence of U-20 Suriyah resulted in a counterattack that set O. Mando free through the middle, but the keeper made a spectacular diving save. U-20 Pakistan had to make a substitution after 43 minutes. A. Shahadat limped off the field and was replaced by J. Bhatti. Halftime score was 1 - 0. U-20 Pakistan claimed to have seen most of the ball, and the statistics agreed with them - possession being 64 percent.

U-20 Suriyah needed a fresh pair of legs on the field, and after 46 minutes O. Mando made way for A. Fayez. U-20 Suriyah's talent at pressing frustrated the spectators as the game became a dire midfield struggle. S. Wasif was uncomfortable with the soggy pitch as he couldn't move the ball around with his usual grace. Having been awarded a free kick in an awkward position after 57 minutes, U-20 Pakistan did not go for a shot but instead fired the ball hard into the 6 yard box. After a brief tussle with his marker, A. Haidar was able to power the ball past the keeper to make the score 2 - 0. After this, you could see that the players of U-20 Pakistan were more interested in killing time than scoring more goals. Although the whole team were struggling to impress, U-20 Suriyah's Y. Habbouche was singled out as being the problem as he was called off the pitch after 65 minutes. F. Hunaydi was given a chance to change things around. After 66 minutes, U-20 Suriyah switched K. Taearah with M. Abou Saada, hoping for a quick impact on the pitch. After 76 minutes U-20 Pakistan's A. Gauher had to be carried off on a stretcher in agony. O. Sikandar came in to replace him. 80 minutes into the game, U-20 Suriyah seemed a little tentative in their play as their organization fell to passable. Things were deteriorating for the away team as U-20 Pakistan scored another to make it 3 - 0 after a left side attack resulted in a goal for O. Sikandar after 82 minutes. The visitors' right side was dangerous today; R. Al Sebai made the home team's keeper look foolish as he easily reduced the lead to make it 3 - 1 87 minutes into the match. U-20 Pakistan enjoyed most of the ball, as they maintained 60 percent of possession.

Most important U-20 Pakistan player was H. Khurshid. A. Haidar turned in a dismal performance, however. U-20 Suriyah's top performer was clearly M. Habbouche. However, F. Hunaydi made a disastrous appearance. The match ends 3 - 1.