By Daniel Etchells

Masoud Shojaei celebrates his goal which sealed three points for Iran against Bahrain ©Getty ImagesIran scored either side of half-time to start their 2015 Asian Cup campaign with a 2-0 victory against Bahrain in the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium.

Ehsan Hajsafi opened the scoring in the second minute of first-half stoppage time before Masoud Shojaei's 71st minute strike ensured the three-time champions made a winning start in Group C.

In the group's other encounter earlier in the day, the United Arab Emirates came from behind to beat Qatar 4-1 at the Canberra Stadium. 

Ahmed Khalil and Ali Mabkhout both netted a brace to cancel out Khalfan Ibrahim's opener for Qatar.

"I am very happy with this win, especially as we worked very hard for this game as it was the key game in the group for us," Mahdi Ali, the UAE coach, told the Asian Cup's official website.

"I felt optimistic ahead of this game after seeing the players putting in all their effort in training and camp.

"I was sure the players would do their best and this is why I was confident.

The United Arab of Emirates' Ali Mabkhout scored two goals against Qatar in a 4-1 win ©Getty ImagesThe United Arab of Emirates' Ali Mabkhout scored two goals against Qatar in a 4-1 win ©Getty Images



"We are celebrating for this game but tomorrow we will forget about this and focus on the next game against Bahrain, which is a good team and I am sure they will perform very well.

"We have three games in this group and the first game is very important because it gives more motivation and confidence for the next game.

"Now we are in a good position in the group and this gives us confidence."

Title holders Japan enter the fray tomorrow as they go up against tournament debutants Palestine in Group D, while 2007 winners Iraq face Jordan. 

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