5 legends of Asian Cup

1. Ali Daei – Iran

Ali Daei - nicknamed Shahriar (King in Farsi) - held the record of 109 goals for the national team, before being broken by Cristiano Ronaldo at EURO 2020. Daei never won the Asian Cup, but went down in history as the player with the most goals in the finals. At the 1996 Asian Cup, Daei became the top scorer with 8 goals. At the 2000 and 2004 Asian Cups, he scored 6 more goals, thereby becoming the all-time top scorer of the Asian Cup with a total of 14 goals.

2. Shunsuke Nakamura – Japan

Shunsuke Nakamura first played in the Asian Cup as a 22-year-old in 2000, when Japan won their second title in history. However, the 2004 tournament was truly the former Celtic star's playground. After scoring against Oman (1-0) and Thailand (4-1) in the group stage, Nakamura continued to score in the semi-finals (a 4-3 win over Bahrain). In the final, he assisted all three goals, and was named Player of the Tournament. In 2007, Nakamura continued to shine with 2 goals and 2 assists. But the Japanese team lost 2-3 to Saudi Arabia in the semi-finals and to South Korea on penalties in the third-place match.

3. Younis Mahmoud – Iraq

Iraq created the biggest surprise in history when they won the title in 2007 thanks to a brilliant performance by their main striker Younis Mahmoud. After scoring in the opening match, which ended in a 1-1 draw with host Thailand, Mahmoud and his teammates beat Australia 3-1 and drew 0-0 with Oman.

In the quarter-final match against Vietnam (2-0), Mahmoud scored both goals. After beating South Korea 4-3 in the penalty shootout, Mahmoud headed Iraq to beat Saudi Arabia with a minimal score in the final. In addition to the Golden Boot, Mahmoud was also awarded the "Best Player of the Tournament" award. Mahmoud is also the only player to have scored in 4 Asian Cups to date.

4. Tim Cahill – Australia

When Australia first qualified for the Asian Cup in 2007, Tim Cahill scored just once in a 1-1 group stage draw with Oman, before losing 4-3 on penalties to Japan in the quarter-finals. Four years later, the former Everton star scored twice but still could not help Australia reach the final, losing 1-0 to Japan.

In 2015, Cahill and his teammates fulfilled their dream of winning the Asian Cup. The 35-year-old striker scored in a 4-1 win over Kuwait in the group stage and scored twice to help Australia defeat China in the quarter-finals. In the final, Australia beat South Korea 2-1 to reach the top of Asia for the first time. Cahill ended his international career with a record 50 goals for the Australian team.

5. Saleh Al Nu'eimah – Saudi Arabia

Saleh Al Nu'eimah was one of Asia's most reliable centre-backs in the 1970s and 1980s. When Saudi Arabia participated in the Asian Cup for the first time in 1984, the 27-year-old captain led a defence that conceded only three goals in six matches. Al Nu'eimeh also scored accurately in the penalty shootout in the semi-final win over Iran. In the final, Al-Nu'eimeh and his teammates beat China 2-0. In 1988, Al Nu'eimeh continued to shine as Saudi Arabia successfully defended the championship./.