Identifying 5 teams that will advance to the group stage of the 2023 Asian Cup

In Group A, Qatar showed their superiority over the remaining opponents. Star Akram Afif shone brightly with 3 goals in just 2 matches to help the Asian Cup host win a ticket to the round of 16 with one match early.

With 4 points more than the 2nd place team China, Qatar is still sure to win Group A. Their next opponent will be the 3rd place team in Group B, E or F.

Qatar is the first team to pass the group stage of the 2023 Asian Cup.

In Group B, Australia has also secured a place in the next round. In the final match, the "Socceroos" will fight Uzbekistan for the top spot in the group.

The same situation also happened in Group C. Iran is leading and is sure to go on with 2 wins and 6 points. Right behind Sardar Azmoun and his teammates is UAE with 4 points. In the final round, these two teams will meet at Education City Stadium.

In Group D, a convincing 2-1 victory over Japan officially helped Iraq enter the knockout round of the 2023 Asian Cup with 6 points after 2 wins.

In the final round, even if the West Asian representative loses to Vietnam, they will still be sure to win the group, because they have better head-to-head records than Japan and Iraq. This is also a factor to consider, when the two teams have the same number of points.

By early this morning (January 22), Saudi Arabia defeated Kyrgyzstan to become the 5th team to early qualify for the next round.

At this point, only Group E has not yet had a team advance. The chances are still divided equally between Jordan (4 points), South Korea (4 points) and Bahrain (3 points). Malaysia has been eliminated after 2 consecutive losses.

At the 2023 Asian Cup, the top two teams in each group will advance to the group stage. In addition, the four best third-placed teams will also advance to the next round.