# 2019 AFC Asian Cup Group E

Group E of the 2019 AFC Asian Cup took place from 8 to 17 January 2019. The group consisted of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Lebanon and North Korea. The top two teams, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, advanced to the round of 16. However, third-placed Lebanon missed out qualification to the knockout stage by fair play points to Vietnam.
Saudi Arabia were the only former champions in the group, having won three Asian Cup titles in 1984, 1988 and 1996.

## Teams

| Draw position | Team | Zone | Method of qualification | Date of qualification | Finals appearance | Last appearance | Previous best performance | FIFA Rankings | FIFA Rankings |
| Draw position | Team | Zone | Method of qualification | Date of qualification | Finals appearance | Last appearance | Previous best performance | April 2018 | December 2018 |
| E1 | Saudi Arabia | WAFF | Second round group A winners | 24 March 2016 | 10th | 2015 (group stage) | Winners (1984, 1988, 1996) | 70 | 69 |
| E2 | Qatar | WAFF | Second round group C winners | 17 November 2015 | 10th | 2015 (group stage) | Quarter-finals (2000, 2011) | 101 | 93 |
| E3 | Lebanon | WAFF | Third Round Group B winners | 10 November 2017 | 2nd | 2000 (group stage) | Group stage (2000) | 82 | 81 |
| E4 | North Korea | EAFF | Third Round Group B runners-up | 27 March 2018 | 5th | 2015 (group stage) | Fourth place (1980) | 112 | 109 |

### Notes

* ↑ The rankings of April 2018 were used for seeding for the final draw.

## Standings

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Qatar | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | +10 | 9 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 2 | Saudi Arabia | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 6 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 3 | Lebanon | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 5 | −1 | 3 | |
| 4 | North Korea | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 14 | −13 | 0 | |
In the round of 16:
* The winners of Group E, Qatar, advanced to play the runners-up of Group D, Iraq.
* The runners-up of Group E, Saudi Arabia, advanced to play the winners of Group F, Japan.

## Matches

All times listed are GST (UTC+4).

### Saudi Arabia vs North Korea

The first chance of the game came in the 13th minute through Abdulaziz Al-Bishi’s left-footed strike which just missed the target. In the 28th minute, Hattan Bahebri dribbled past Ri Il-jin and sent a curler from the left to give Saudi Arabia the lead. Housain Al-Mogahwi’s free kick from just outside the box sailed into the box and Mohammed Al-Fatil diverted it into the net with a back-heel to double Saudi Arabia’s advantage. Just a minute before the break, Han Kwang-song received a second yellow card for a tackle on Al-Mogahwi. North Korea were reduced to 10 men but they came close to scoring in the 64th minute through captain Jong Il-gwan. However, the Saudi defenders regrouped to deny him. Moments later, Saudi Arabia had a missed opportunity, when Fahad Al-Muwallad side-stepped defender Kim Chol-bom and goalkeeper Ri Myong-guk but his shot flew wide. In the 70th minute, Salem Al-Dawsari was left unmarked and the Saudi captain made no mistake from the centre of the box to make it 3–0. In the 87th minute, defender Kim Song-gi failed to clear Hamdan Al-Shamrani’s cross into the box and Al-Muwallad slammed the ball into the back of the net to seal Saudi Arabia’s first opening AFC Asian Cup match win since they emerged champions in 1996.
| Saudi Arabia | North Korea |
| GK | 21 | Mohammed Al-Owais |
| RB | 2 | Mohammed Al-Breik |
| CB | 4 | Ali Al-Bulaihi |
| CB | 23 | Mohammed Al-Fatil |
| LB | 13 | Yasser Al-Shahrani | | 82' |
| DM | 14 | Abdullah Otayf |
| CM | 16 | Housain Al-Mogahwi |
| CM | 20 | Abdulaziz Al-Bishi | | 71' |
| RW | 11 | Hattan Bahebri | | 78' |
| LW | 10 | Salem Al-Dawsari (c) | 45+1' |
| CF | 19 | Fahad Al-Muwallad |
| Substitutions: ||
| MF | 18 | Abdulrahman Ghareeb | | 71' |
| FW | 9 | Mohammed Al-Saiari | | 78' |
| DF | 12 | Hamdan Al-Shamrani | | 82' |
| Manager: ||
| Juan Antonio Pizzi ||
| GK | 1 | Ri Myong-guk |
| RB | 5 | An Song-il | | 46' |
| CB | 4 | Kim Song-gi |
| CB | 16 | Ri Yong-jik | | 90+1' |
| LB | 3 | Jang Kuk-chol | | 56' |
| RM | 23 | Ri Il-jin | 53' |
| CM | 15 | Ri Un-chol |
| LM | 2 | Kim Chol-bom | 32' |
| AM | 7 | Han Kwang-song | 36' 44' |
| AM | 11 | Jong Il-gwan (c) | 90' |
| CF | 10 | Pak Kwang-ryong |
| Substitutions: ||
| MF | 12 | Kim Kyong-hun | | 46' |
| DF | 17 | Ri Chang-ho | | 56' |
| FW | 19 | Rim Kwang-hyok | | 90+1' |
| Manager: ||
| Kim Yong-jun ||
* Man of the Match:
* Salem Al-Dawsari (Saudi Arabia)
* Assistant referees:
* Matthew Cream (Australia)
* Anton Shchetinin (Australia)
* Fourth official:
* Sergei Grishchenko (Kyrgyzstan)
* Additional assistant referees:
* Valentin Kovalenko (Uzbekistan)
* Chris Beath (Australia)

### Qatar vs Lebanon

In the 37th minute, Ali Hamam raced off to celebrate with his teammates after slotting Hassan Maatouk's corner into the Qatari goal, only for the referee to controversially blow the whistle for a foul on Tarek Salman. Maatouk pulled the trigger on an effort of his own just before half-time, but his scissor kick flew high over the bar. Two minutes after the hour mark, 2018 AFC Player of the Year Abdelkarim Hassan was introduced from the bench for Abdulkarim Al-Ali and within three minutes, the Qataris took the lead from Bassam Al-Rawi's strike from a free kick. The defender sent a dipping, curling right-footed effort over the wall and beyond the outstretched hand of Mehdi Khalil. Qatar added a second with 11 minutes remaining. Hassan's driving run created space for Akram Afif and, when the winger received the ball, his centre found Abdulaziz Hatem, whose shot was saved by Khalil. But Almoez Ali was on hand to roll the ball into the empty net to ensure a winning start to the campaign for Qatar.
| Qatar | Lebanon |
| GK | 1 | Saad Al-Sheeb |
| CB | 2 | Ró-Ró |
| CB | 4 | Tarek Salman |
| CB | 15 | Bassam Al-Rawi |
| RM | 23 | Assim Madibo |
| CM | 16 | Boualem Khoukhi |
| CM | 12 | Karim Boudiaf | 56' |
| LM | 18 | Abdulkarim Al-Ali | 62' |
| RF | 10 | Hassan Al-Haydos (c) | 85' |
| CF | 19 | Almoez Ali |
| LF | 11 | Akram Afif |
| Substitutions: ||
| MF | 6 | Abdulaziz Hatem | 56' |
| DF | 3 | Abdelkarim Hassan | 62' |
| FW | 7 | Ahmed Alaaeldin | 85' |
| Manager: ||
| Félix Sánchez ||
| GK | 1 | Mehdi Khalil |
| RB | 11 | Alexander Michel Melki | 24' | 72' |
| CB | 3 | Mootaz Jounaidi | | 84' |
| CB | 6 | Joan Oumari |
| LB | 13 | Felix Michel Melki | | 77' |
| DM | 15 | Haytham Faour |
| RM | 19 | Ali Hamam |
| LM | 18 | Walid Ismail |
| AM | 22 | Bassel Jradi |
| CF | 9 | Hilal El-Helwe |
| CF | 7 | Hassan Maatouk (c) | 64' |
| Substitutions: ||
| MF | 14 | Nader Matar | | 72' |
| MF | 5 | Samir Ayass | | 77' |
| MF | 10 | Mohamad Haidar | | 84' |
| Manager: ||
| Miodrag Radulović ||
* Man of the Match:
* Assim Madibo (Qatar)
* Assistant referees:
* Huo Weiming (China PR)
* Cao Yi (China PR)
* Fourth official:
* Ronnie Koh Min Kiat (Singapore)
* Additional assistant referees:
* Fu Ming (China PR)
* Liu Kwok Man (Hong Kong)

### Lebanon vs Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia found their breakthrough in the 12th minute when they latched onto a defensive mistake. Lebanon’s Joan Oumari’s back pass deflected off teammate Alexander Michel Melki’s left boot. The ball landed near Saudi Arabia’s Fahad Al-Muwallad, who half-volleyed home from close range. Oumari failed to keep his header down in the 16th minute, while Felix Michel Melki just missed Hassan Maatouk’s free kick eight minutes later. After the break, Hattan Bahebri took a chance from almost 30 yards out which forced a save from goalkeeper Mehdi Khalil. Bahebri made an assist in the 67th minute, when his cross into the box found Housain Al-Mogahwi, who made it 2–0. This win earned Saudi Arabia a ticket to the round of sixteen for the first time since the 2007 edition, in which Saudi Arabia finished runners-up.
| Lebanon | Saudi Arabia |
| GK | 1 | Mehdi Khalil |
| RB | 11 | Alexander Michel Melki |
| CB | 2 | Kassem El Zein |
| CB | 3 | Mootaz Jounaidi |
| CB | 6 | Joan Oumari |
| LB | 13 | Felix Michel Melki | 70' |
| DM | 15 | Haytham Faour | | 73' |
| RM | 19 | Ali Hamam |
| LM | 7 | Hassan Maatouk (c) | | 76' |
| AM | 10 | Mohamad Haidar | 82' | 86' |
| CF | 9 | Hilal El-Helwe | 89' |
| Substitutions: ||
| FW | 20 | Rabih Ataya | | 73' |
| MF | 14 | Nader Matar | | 76' |
| DF | 17 | Mohamed Zein Tahan | | 86' |
| Manager: ||
| Miodrag Radulović ||
| GK | 21 | Mohammed Al-Owais |
| RB | 2 | Mohammed Al-Breik |
| CB | 23 | Mohammed Al-Fatil |
| CB | 4 | Ali Al-Bulaihi |
| LB | 12 | Hamdan Al-Shamrani |
| DM | 14 | Abdullah Otayf | | 84' |
| CM | 20 | Abdulaziz Al-Bishi | 41' | 79' |
| CM | 16 | Housain Al-Mogahwi |
| RW | 11 | Hattan Bahebri |
| LW | 10 | Salem Al-Dawsari (c) | 90+2' |
| CF | 19 | Fahad Al-Muwallad | | 73' |
| Substitutions: ||
| MF | 8 | Yahya Al-Shehri | | 73' |
| MF | 18 | Abdulrahman Ghareeb | | 79' |
| MF | 15 | Ibrahim Ghaleb | | 84' |
| Manager: ||
| Juan Antonio Pizzi ||
* Man of the Match:
* Hattan Bahebri (Saudi Arabia)
* Assistant referees:
* Abu Bakar Al-Amri (Oman)
* Rashid Al-Ghaithi (Oman)
* Fourth official:
* Abdukhamidullo Rasulov (Uzbekistan)
* Additional assistant referees:
* Mohanad Qassim (Iraq)
* Mohd Amirul Izwan Yaacob (Malaysia)

### North Korea vs Qatar

Qatar were in front in the ninth minute when Akram Afif glided past Sim Hyon-jin before delivering a low cross to Almoez Ali, who struck past Ri Myong-guk. Qatar doubled their lead two minutes later, when Abdelkarim Hassan’s ball found Hassan Al-Haydos, whose low centre was struck in the goal from close range by Ali. Ri Un-chol tried from outside the area, but his drive narrowly failed to find the top corner. With just two minutes remaining in the first half, Afif lifted the ball high over the advancing Myong-guk and Boualem Khoukhi headed in from close range. Ali completed his hat-trick 10 minutes into the second half with a finish from Afif’s through ball. Five minutes later, Afif led a counter-attack before rolling the ball through to Ali, who smashed his shot across Myong-guk and inside the far post. Ali turned provider in the 68th minute when his pass allowed Hassan to storm through the North Korean defence and slot home Qatar’s sixth. The East Asian side’s misery was compounded in the last minute when Jong Il-gwan was shown a second yellow card.
It was North Korea’s heaviest ever defeat at the Asian Cup, surpassing their previous 0–4 defeat to Saudi Arabia in their opening 2019 Asian Cup match. Qatar’s win enabled them to progress to the knockout stages for the first time since the 2011 edition that they hosted. Controversy rose around the almost empty stadium as very few fans were allowed to enter.
| North Korea | Qatar |
| GK | 1 | Ri Myong-guk |
| CB | 13 | Sim Hyon-jin |
| CB | 4 | Kim Song-gi | | 77' |
| CB | 2 | Kim Chol-bom |
| RM | 23 | Ri Il-jin | 17' |
| CM | 15 | Ri Un-chol | 13' |
| LM | 12 | Kim Kyong-hun |
| RW | 9 | Kim Yong-il | 39' | 43' |
| AM | 11 | Jong Il-gwan (c) | 17' 90' |
| LW | 19 | Rim Kwang-hyok | | 63' |
| CF | 10 | Pak Kwang-ryong | 54' |
| Substitutions: ||
| MF | 8 | Ri Hyok-chol | | 43' |
| MF | 16 | Ri Yong-jik | | 63' |
| DF | 6 | Ri Thong-il | | 77' |
| Manager: ||
| Kim Yong-jun ||
| GK | 1 | Saad Al-Sheeb |
| RB | 2 | Ró-Ró | | 74' |
| CB | 15 | Bassam Al-Rawi |
| CB | 4 | Tarek Salman |
| LB | 3 | Abdelkarim Hassan | 7' | 80' |
| CM | 23 | Assim Madibo | | 71' |
| CM | 6 | Abdulaziz Hatem |
| RW | 10 | Hassan Al-Haydos (c) |
| AM | 16 | Boualem Khoukhi |
| LW | 11 | Akram Afif |
| CF | 19 | Almoez Ali |
| Substitutions: ||
| MF | 5 | Ahmed Fatehi | | 71' |
| DF | 8 | Hamid Ismail | | 74' |
| MF | 20 | Ali Afif | | 80' |
| Manager: ||
| Félix Sánchez ||
* Man of the Match:
* Almoez Ali (Qatar)
* Assistant referees:
* Palitha Hemathunga (Sri Lanka)
* Jakhongir Saidov (Uzbekistan)
* Fourth official:
* Matthew Cream (Australia)
* Additional assistant referees:
* Valentin Kovalenko (Uzbekistan)
* Ilgiz Tantashev (Uzbekistan)

### Saudi Arabia vs Qatar

Mohammed Al-Owais parried away Boualem Khoukhi's drive on 16 minutes in the first genuine threat to either goal. Housain Al-Mogahwi shot over the bar for Saudi Arabia following Yahya Al-Shehri's probing run and cross, before Fahad Al-Muwallad struck an upright with Qatar goalkeeper Saad Al-Sheeb beaten. Hassan Al-Haydos' 42nd minute penalty was saved by Al-Owais. However, minutes later, Abdulaziz Hatem's through ball found Almoez Ali who converted to open the scoring on the stroke of half-time. Within five minutes of the restart Hattan Bahebri forced Al-Sheeb into a save. Bahebri's effort from 15 yards fizzed narrowly over the bar on 73 minutes. Qatar extended their lead with 10 minutes remaining, when Ali leaped to thump home a header from Hatem's corner. It proved to be the final genuine goalmouth action as Qatar held on to seal another three points.
The match was dubbed the "Blockade Derby", in reference to the diplomatic disputes between the two nations. However, there was no on-field incidents and the match ended in a friendly atmosphere.
| Saudi Arabia | Qatar |
| GK | 21 | Mohammed Al-Owais |
| RB | 2 | Mohammed Al-Breik |
| CB | 4 | Ali Al-Bulaihi | 41' |
| CB | 23 | Mohammed Al-Fatil |
| LB | 12 | Hamdan Al-Shamrani |
| DM | 14 | Abdullah Otayf | | 78' |
| CM | 8 | Yahya Al-Shehri (c) |
| CM | 16 | Housain Al-Mogahwi |
| RW | 11 | Hattan Bahebri |
| LW | 19 | Fahad Al-Muwallad | | 75' |
| CF | 18 | Abdulrahman Ghareeb | | 61' |
| Substitutions: ||
| FW | 9 | Mohammed Al-Saiari | 82' | 61' |
| MF | 6 | Ayman Al-Khulaif | | 75' |
| MF | 7 | Nooh Al-Mousa | | 78' |
| Manager: ||
| Juan Antonio Pizzi ||
| GK | 1 | Saad Al-Sheeb |
| RB | 2 | Ró-Ró |
| CB | 15 | Bassam Al-Rawi |
| CB | 4 | Tarek Salman |
| LB | 3 | Abdelkarim Hassan |
| CM | 6 | Abdulaziz Hatem | 58' |
| CM | 23 | Assim Madibo | 7' | 69' |
| CM | 16 | Boualem Khoukhi |
| RF | 10 | Hassan Al-Haydos (c) | | 73' |
| CF | 19 | Almoez Ali | 45+1' | 83' |
| LF | 11 | Akram Afif |
| Substitutions: ||
| MF | 14 | Salem Al-Hajri | | 69' |
| MF | 12 | Karim Boudiaf | | 73' |
| FW | 7 | Ahmed Alaaeldin | | 83' |
| Manager: ||
| Félix Sánchez ||
* Man of the Match:
* Almoez Ali (Qatar)
* Assistant referees:
* Yoon Kwang-yeol (South Korea)
* Park Sang-jun (South Korea)
* Fourth official:
* Cao Yi (China PR)
* Additional assistant referees:
* Ko Hyung-jin (South Korea)
* Fu Ming (China PR)

### Lebanon vs North Korea

Pak Kwang-ryong converted his free kick in the ninth minute to give North Korea an early advantage. However, Lebanon levelled the score just before the half hour mark when Hassan Maatouk dribbled down the left before laying off for Felix Michel Melki, who smashed the ball into the back of the net. Hilal El-Helwe’s effort was cleared off the line in the 32nd minute. Felix came close to scoring his second in the 57th minute but angled his header across the bar. In the 65th minute, Mohamad Haidar’s cross found El-Helwe who turned to score from close range. North Korea conceded a penalty after Rabih Ataya was brought down in the danger area. Maatouk converted the spot-kick in the 80th minute, sending goalkeeper Ri Myong-guk the wrong way, with a fourth coming in the eighth minute of added time through El-Helwe as Lebanon won their first ever Asian Cup match. However, they were edged by Vietnam in the third-place ranking on fair-play points due to receiving more yellow cards and were eliminated from the tournament. This loss extended North Korea's winless streak, with their last win dating back to their fourth place finish in the 1980 edition.
| Lebanon | North Korea |
| GK | 1 | Mehdi Khalil |
| RB | 11 | Alexander Michel Melki | 30' |
| CB | 4 | Nour Mansour | | 81' |
| CB | 6 | Joan Oumari |
| LB | 13 | Felix Michel Melki |
| CM | 5 | Samir Ayass | | 77' |
| CM | 14 | Nader Matar | | 53' |
| RW | 7 | Hassan Maatouk (c) |
| AM | 10 | Mohamad Haidar | 90+9' |
| LW | 18 | Walid Ismail |
| CF | 9 | Hilal El-Helwe |
| Substitutions: ||
| FW | 20 | Rabih Ataya | | 53' |
| MF | 12 | Adnan Haidar | | 77' |
| FW | 8 | Hassan "Moni" Chaito | | 81' |
| Manager: ||
| Miodrag Radulović ||
| GK | 1 | Ri Myong-guk |
| CB | 5 | An Song-il | 11' |
| CB | 16 | Ri Yong-jik |
| CB | 3 | Jang Kuk-chol (c) |
| RWB | 13 | Sim Hyon-jin |
| LWB | 2 | Kim Chol-bom | 61' | 61' |
| CM | 9 | Kim Yong-il | 85' |
| CM | 15 | Ri Un-chol |
| CM | 12 | Kim Kyong-hun | | 29' |
| CF | 7 | Han Kwang-song |
| CF | 10 | Pak Kwang-ryong |
| Substitutions: ||
| MF | 14 | Kang Kuk-chol | | 29' | 75' |
| MF | 8 | Ri Hyok-chol | 72' | 61' |
| MF | 20 | Choe Song-hyok | | | 75' |
| Manager: ||
| Kim Yong-jun ||
* Man of the Match:
* Felix Michel Melki (Lebanon)
* Assistant referees:
* Matthew Cream (Australia)
* Anton Shchetinin (Australia)
* Fourth official:
* Ronnie Koh Min Kiat (Singapore)
* Additional assistant referees:
* Muhammad Taqi (Singapore)
* Liu Kwok Man (Hong Kong)

## Discipline

Fair play points were used as tiebreakers if the head-to-head and overall records of teams were tied (and if a penalty shoot-out was not applicable as a tiebreaker). These were calculated based on yellow and red cards received in all group matches as follows:
* yellow card = 1 point
* red card as a result of two yellow cards = 3 points
* direct red card = 3 points
* yellow card followed by direct red card = 4 points
Only one of the above deductions was applied to a player in a single match.
| Team | Match 1 | Match 1 | Match 2 | Match 2 | Match 3 | Points |
| Qatar | | | 1 | | 3 | −4 |
| Saudi Arabia | 1 | | 2 | | 2 | −5 |
| Lebanon | 2 | | 3 | | 2 | −7 |
| North Korea | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 4 | −17 |