SINGAPORE — Jordan booked a place in the 2015 AFC Asian Cup Finals with a 3-1 win over 10-man Singapore in an ill-tempered Group A clash at Jalan Besar Stadium Tuesday. Needing a victory to qualify from the group alongside Oman, Thaer Bawab and Ahmad Hayel scored either side of halftime for the visitors. Khairul Amri then converted a penalty for Singapore but substitute Yousef Ahmad netted in stoppage time to help Jordan go through with a game to spare. Singapore defender Baihakki Khaizan was sent off at the end of the first half and Jordan captain and goal-scorer Hayel was also shown the red card in the 70th minute. Jordan is two points behind group leader Oman. Syria is third on four points while Singapore has three. Twelve nations had already qualified for the 16-team Finals — host Australia, holder Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Bahrain, Iran, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Oman and Uzbekistan. The draw will be made in Sydney on March 26. Sampdoria beats Genoa In Italy, Maxi Lopez scored on his Sampdoria return to give the team a 1-0 victory at bitter rival Genoa in the derby della lanterna Monday. Lopez is in his second loan spell at Sampdoria and he took less than 24 minutes to mark his debut with a goal. The Argentine played a one-two with Eder before lifting the ball over Genoa goalkeeper Mattia Perin. “It's a new fantastic debut,” Lopez said. “I couldn't ask for more. This is a reward for the hard work of the squad and a present for the fans who were at the stadium tonight. “I'm happy with the goal, I've returned home. I have to thank the club for the faith they've shown in me, I needed consistency and to be back at the top level.” Genoa twice had the ball in the back of the net but Luca Antonelli's effort four minutes from halftime and Moussa Konate's 65th-minute strike were both ruled out for offside. The match was originally scheduled to take place Sunday night but was postponed for security reasons, with the region's biggest market taking place at the same time near the stadium. Sampdoria moved into 13th place in the table, two points behind Genoa. Villarreal wins In Spain, Villarreal sparked to life in the second half to beat Osasuna 3-1 Monday, gaining ground on Athletic Bilbao in the chase for the Spanish league's last Champions League place. — Agencies
