KUANTAN, Sept 24 (Bernama) -- Malaysia have confirmed their place in the 2026 Futsal Asian Cup Finals in Jakarta despite losing 4-0 to 13-time champions Iran in their final Group G qualifying match at the SUKPA Indoor Stadium here today.
Iran got the ball rolling in the fourth minute through Mehdi Mehdikhani before Hossein Derakhshani doubled their lead in the 12th minute.
In the second half, skipper Hossein Tayyebi made it 3-0 for the Asian number one-ranked team in the 33rd minute before Ali Khalilvand wrapped up the scoring with the fourth goal three minutes later.
Despite the defeat, the Malaysian team, under coach Rakphol Sainetngam, showed good fighting spirit and even managed to threaten Iran's goalmouth a few times.
Iran topped Group G with nine points, followed by Malaysia (six points), the United Arab Emirates (UAE) (three points) and Bangladesh (no points).
Malaysia had previously edged the UAE 1-0 in their opening tie before trouncing Bangladesh 7-1 in the second match.
The qualifying format sees the eight group winners and the seven best second-placed teams from the qualifiers joining hosts Indonesia in the Futsal Asian Cup Finals next January.
-- BERNAMA
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