Iraq 1-0 Indonesia Highlights, FIFA World Cup AFC Qualifiers: Zidane Iqbal Gives 10-Man Lions Of Mesopotamia Nervy Win

Greetings, football fans. This is the beginning of our live blog on the AFC World Cup Qualifiers between Iraq and Indonesia. The action in Jeddah starts at 1:00 AM IST, so stay tuned for pre-match updates and lineups as they are released.

Starting XI: Jalal Hassan (gk) (c); Munaf Younus, Merchas Doski, Zaid Tahseen, Hussein Ali; Amir Al-Ammari, Bashar Resan; Mohanad Ali, Ibrahim Bayesh, Kevin Yakob; Gubari Sherko

Bench: Fahad Talib (gk), Ahmed Basil (gk), Rebin Sulaka, Akam Hashem, Youssef Amyn, Abdelkarim Hassan, Zidane Iqbal, Ahmed Yahya, Ali Jasim, Amar Muhsin, Aimar Sher, Mustafa Saadoon

Starting XI: Maarten Paes (gk); Dean James, Jay Idzes (c), Kevin Diks, Rizky Ridho; Thom Haye, Calvin Verdonk, Joey Pelupessy, Ricky Kambuaya; Eliano Reijnders, Mauro Zijlstra

Bench: Ernando Ari (gk), Nadeo Argawinata (gk), Jordi Amat, Miliano Jonathans, Marc Klok, Stefano Lilipaly, Ragnar ORatmangoen, Shayne Pattynama, Ramadhan Sananta, Ole ter Haar Romeny, Nathan Tjoe a On, Sandy Walsh

Last Five Matches:

• Indonesia 0-2 Iraq (WC Qualifiers, 2024)

• Indonesia 1-3 Iraq (Asian Cup, 2024)

• Iraq 5-1 Indonesia (WC Qualifiers, 2023)

The referee blows his whistle for the start of first half in Jeddah. It's a must-win game for Indonesia after a narrow, heart-breaking loss to Saudi Arabia in the first game. Can they overcome the challenge of Iraq - the highest-raned team in the group? Stay tuned!

It has been a good start from Indonesia against a much-stronger Iraq side. Haye had a snap shot at goal from a long way out, but it went wide. That's the third shot from the visitors during the opening 10 minutes, though none of them have been on target.

Ziljstra has a half-decent chance inside the box but drags his effort wide, marking Indonesia's fifth attempt without any of them being on target. Iraq, for their part, have been reduced to having shots from distance, unable to break down the pair of Idzes and Ridho, and have given up their posession supremacy as well.

The regulation 45 minutes are done, and neither side have had a shot on target yet, despite Indonesia racking up the shots tally. Other than a chance for Zijlstra inside the penalty area, there has been no opening for forwards in what has been a cagey affair so far - with both teams afraid of taking risks. Something has to change in the break.

The five-plus minutes of injury time have been played, and the referee brings the first half to an end. It has been 45 minutes of tactical battle between the two managers on the touchline, and neither side have played with any kind of freedom or fluency.

However, with Indonesia needing the three points much more than their opponents, Patrick Kluivert has some tough decisions to make during half-time ahead of a make-or-break second half.

The players are out on the pitch, and the second half is underway at the King Abdullah Sports City. It was a dreadful first half for the neutrals watching, and both sides, at least for the sake of their qualification, will hope for a better performance.

Zijlstra, who missed a decent chance in the first half, is brought off by Kluivert and replaced by Ole Romeny, who was excellent in the previous game against Saudi Arabia. Can he make a difference tonight as well, or at least get the first shot on target of the match?

This is the moment we were waiting for, and it's Iraq who take their chances. Former Man United prodigy Zidane Iqbal gets the goal with a well-taken effort from outside the penalty area. The youngster showed excellent close control to make his way into the box, and his finish gave Paes no chance at all.

The regulation time is up, and the fourth official indicates a minimum of ELEVEN minutes to be added on. That's a lot of time, but the seconds are running out for Indonesia to get something out of this game, especially considering how well they have played all night against a far superior opposition.

This is not what Iraq had in mind. They have been superb in defending their one-goal lead so far, but Tahseen sees a second yellow card with seconds remaining on the clock for a foul. Poor decision-making from the young centre-back, and Iraq are now a man short in defence.

Indonesia have failed to make the added time count despite having a man advantage over their opponents, and the referee blows his whistle to bring the match to an end.

Fair play to Iraq, who stuck to their guns in the face of relentless opposition attack, and took the lead after a moment of magic from substitute Zidane Iqbal. For Indonesia, this marks two losses in two matches, and puts them in a precarious situation in Group B.