Pakistan endured a nightmare start to their AFC U23 Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers campaign as they were thrashed 8-1 by Iraq at the Olympic Stadium, Phnom Penh, on Wednesday.
Iraq’s Ali Jasim was the star of the night, netting a hat-trick to spearhead his side’s win.
The Green Shirts’ troubles began early when Mohibullah Afridi was shown a red card in the 30th minute, leaving Pakistan with 10 men.
Just three minutes later, Iraq were awarded a penalty following another foul by Pakistan and calmly converted it to take the lead.
The score remained 1-0 in Iraq’s favour at half-time.
Following the break, Jasim netted his first goal in the 48th minute to double Iraq’s lead.
Pakistan managed to pull one back 15 minutes later when McKeal Abdullah successfully converted the penalty.
Iraq then launched a scathing attack and smashed six more goals in the remaining 27 minutes to round up a commanding 8-1 victory over Pakistan.
The resounding victory put Iraq at the top of the Group G standings with three points and a goal difference of seven, while Pakistan succumbed to the bottom.
The Green Shirts next face Cambodia on September 6 before wrapping up their group stage campaign against Chinese Taipei on September 9.
It is worth noting that only the group winners and four second-placed teams will qualify for the AFC U23 Asian Cup 2026, scheduled to take place in Saudi Arabia.