Jeddah, January 7 (QNA) - The Qatari national team lost 2-0 to the UAE in their opening match of the AFC U-23 Championship. The match took place on Wednesday at Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Sports City Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, as part of Group B, which also includes Japan and Syria.

Saudi Arabia is hosting the seventh edition of the tournament, which kicked off yesterday (Tuesday) and will continue until January 24, with 16 teams participating.

The UAE's goals were scored by Ali Al Maamari in the 21st minute and Junior Ndaye in the 37th minute.

With this result, Qatar sits in third place in the group with zero points, while the UAE are in second place with three points.

Japan topped the group after their resounding 5-0 victory over Syria in an earlier match today.

The Qatari national team established a clear advantage early in the match through possession and attacking play, earning a penalty kick after Mohammed Khalid was fouled inside the box. Al Hashemi Al Hussain took the penalty, but UAE goalkeeper Khalid Tawhid made the save in the third minute.

The UAE team managed to open the scoring through Ali Al Maamari, who capitalized on a rebound after the Qatari goalkeeper parried the initial shot, converting it into the net in the 21st minute.

The UAE team extended their lead with a second goal after a cross into the box was headed in by Junior Ndaye in the 37th minute.

The Qatari team tried to respond and reduce the deficit, but to no avail, and the first half ended with the UAE leading 2-0.

In the second half, Qatar's Portuguese coach, Elidio Vale, made some changes to the lineup to bolster the attack. The team's performance improved, and Mubarak Shanan almost narrowed the gap with a powerful shot that was saved by the UAE goalkeeper in the 58th minute.

Qatar came close to scoring again in the 81st minute when substitute Mohammed Siraj made a run and shot that went over the crossbar.

Despite the efforts of both sides in the remaining time, neither team could find the net, and the match ended with a 2-0 victory for the UAE.(QNA)