time champion Saudi Arabia was dumped out of the Asian Cup Thursday after an error from goalkeeper Waleed Abdullah gifted Jordan a surprise 1-0 victory. It was another disappointing display by the Saudis, who showed no improvement under coach Nasser Al-Johar after he stepped in to replace sacked Portuguese Jose Peseiro following the shock opening defeat by Syria. “I respect Al-Johar and the Saudi team but our winning over the Saudi team is a big accomplishment for the Jordan team,” coach Adnan Hamed told reporters. In the late Group B game Japan beat Syria 2-1 that exploded into life in the closing stages when each side was awarded a penalty and Japan goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima was sent off. The first match saw a woeful opening half where neither side appeared to want to hold possession ended with a mistake when Abdullah was caught out by the swirling breeze at a cold Al-Rayyan Stadium, with many of the 17,349 crowd in jackets, gloves and hats. Three minutes before halftime, Jordan's Bahaa Abdelrahman floated a hopeful, inswinging ball in to the penalty area which sailed over Abdullah, who had stepped of his line to come for the cross, and in to the corner of the goal. Prince Sultan Bin Fahd, President of the General Presidency of Youth Welfare, blamed four parties for the defeat - the Saudi Arabian Football Federation, sacked coach Peseiro, players and the committee for development of sports. The committee, which includes experts from within the Kingdom, England and France, had earlier recommended to retain Peseiro as the team's coach. Al-Johar, talking to reporters at the post-match press conference, said: “He (Abdullah) may have made a mistake and the mistake he has done is common in the world of football.” The three-time champion improved after the break, roared on by its passionate supporters but struggled to find a breakthrough with its captain and leading goal threat Yasser Al-Qahtani unable to get into the game. The Saudis went close on a number of occasions in the final stages but the 107th ranked Jordan side held firm. “We didn't fail,” said Al-Johar. “The Jordan team played defensive throughout the game and we could not reach the goal to score and we were unlucky. “The Saudi team played very well considering the circumstances. We missed a couple of chances to score and the Jordanian goal was luck.” In stoppage time of the second game Syria defender Nadim Sabag was also sent off after a second yellow card when he rushed out of the defensive wall and tried to kick the ball away at a Japan free-kick. Japan was seemingly coasting to victory at the Qatar Sports Club Stadium through skipper Makoto Hasebe's 35th minute goal when Kawashima felled substitute Sanharib Malki who had just been flagged for offside after a mix-up in the Japan defense. Iranian referee Torky Mohsen then had to deal with four minutes of protests in the first seriously controversial incident of the tournament before Kawashima walked and Firas Khatib fired past substitute keeper Shusaku Nishikawa to equalize after 76 minutes. Six minutes later at the other end Mohsen awarded Japan a penalty after Shinji Okazaki was sandwiched between defenders Belal Abduldaim and Ali Dyab. It looked a soft decision but Keisuke Honda scored from the spot to restore Japan's lead. With two matches played Japan and Jordan have four points and Syria three with three-time champions Saudi Arabia eliminated after their second defeat by Jordan earlier.
