UAE 1 - Vietnam 0; Bangladesh tie Tajikistan; Lebanon, Singapore win

In the most highly anticipated of the day's matchups, UAE took a victory on the road in Vietnam and, more importantly, now own an advantage in the aggregate score before going home to face Vietnam in Abu Dhabi on October 28. The lone goal came just eleven minutes before time was called.

In another highly anticipated battle, the Nehru Cup champion India suffered a demoralizing lost to Lebanon in Saida. India will have to overcome a 4-1 deficit when they return to Chennai to face Lebanon on October 28. What stings India the most is that they owned a 1-0 lead in the first half before surrendering a torrent of goals.

Singapore took a surprisingly convincing win in what was supposed to be a close tie against Palestine. The home away from home of Doha, Qatar, did not prove beneficial at all to the Palestinians as they suffered a decisive 4-0 loss with a date in Singapore to look forward to on October 28.

In Dhaka, Bangladesh held a lead for a total of eight minutes over visiting Tajikistan before conceding a penalty kick that knotted the score. The aggregate score goes to Dushanbe tied 1-1. The second leg will take place on October 28.

Yemen beat the Maldives at home 3-0, and their neighbors Oman did likewise to Nepal, 2-0. Both of the southwest Asian countries look to finish off their opponents on the road on October 28.

Syria defeated Afghanistan 3-0 on Monday, though the score was tied at zero for the first 74 minutes of action. The lapse at the end will cost Afghanistan severely, as the two teams next meet in Tajikistan for Afghanistan's home leg on October 26.

In the biggest blowout of the day, Thailand dispatched Macau easily, allowing one first-half goal in a 6-1 victory. The schedule makers seem to want to take mercy on poor Macau, as they are scheduled to finish their campaign at home on October 15, before 14 other Asian teams even play their opening legs.

Goal scorers:
Bangladesh: Mithu 50

Tajikistan: Hakimov 58 PK

Lebanon: Antar 33; Ghaddar 61, 76; Al Ali 63

India: Chetri 30

Oman: Bashir 5; Yousuf 23

Singapore: Jiayi 44, 53; Wilkinson 73; Shah 86

Syria: Al Zeno 743, 87; Al Said 81

Thailand: Chaikamdee 11, 47; Dangda 20; Winothai 53; Phetphun 82; Thonglao 90+1

Macau: Kin-Seng 22

United Arab Emirates: Saeed 79

Yemen: Salem 24; Yahya 66; Saeed 80