Futsalroos defeated by Iraq in final AFC Futsal Asian Cup match | Football Australia

Head coach Miles Downie made four changes to the starting lineup. Aaron Yu started his first game of the tournament in goals, while Ethan De Melo, Tyler Garner and Jamie Dib were rewarded for strong performances throughout.

Daniel Fornito and Wade Giovenali were unavailable through suspension after their red cards in the previous fixture against Saudi Arabia.

The game started off evenly, as both teams felt each other out in the opening exchanges. Yu made a series of good saves on goal while his opposite number Zaher Mahdj Hadi was kept busy by the likes of Grant Lynch and Adam Cooper.

Things came to life in the 14th minute. Firstly, Michael Kouta opened the scoring from a rebound after a swift counterattack. Immediately after, captain Shervin Keshavarz Adeli doubled the Futsalroos lead with an acrobatic effort from a set piece.

The two-goal lead would be short-lived – Iraq soon got a goal back after a thunderous strike from Salim Faisal Al-Husaynat. The score would remain 2-1 to Australia’s advantage at the half-time break.

The second half began the same way as the first, with both teams having their chances. Iraq increasingly used a power play, which is when an outfielder comes on the pitch in a special shirt to indicate that they are replacing the goalkeeper. It almost paid off for them early if not for some special saves from Yu, the best coming in the 24th minute to deny Muheb Aldeen Al-Taie.

Power plays are not without risk, one that the Futsalroos almost exploited if not for Jordan Guerreiro’s shot sliding wide after a counterattack. However, in the 30th minute, Iraq found the breakthrough they had been searching for. After great work from Mustafa Ihsan Al-Bayati to get to the byline, Tareq Zeyad Sulaiman was able