Taipei Times
Date: Sep 07, 2017
By: Jason Pan / Staff reporter

Taiwan were on Tuesday soundly defeated 5-0 by hosts Bahrain in their Asian Football Confederation Asian Cup qualifier, putting the pressure on Taiwan to win in the home-leg match in Taipei on Oct. 10.

The national squad faced several obstacles, including Japanese manager Kazuo Kuroda recuperating from a heart ailment, leaving assistant Reiji Hirata in charge.

Taiwanese-Belgian professional Xavier Chen was also absent, as he stayed in Belgium with his wife, who just gave birth to the couple’s first child.

After the squad’s arrival in Bahrain on Saturday for training, captain Chen Yi-wei came down with the flu and was declared unfit to play.

However, Taiwanese fans still held hope for at least a draw to earn a point for the match, which was played at the Bahrain National Stadium in Riffa, the country’s second-largest city.    [FULL  STORY]