South Korea finished second in Asia Cup Group E on Thursday after Malaysia scored an equalizer in the 15th minute of added time to force a 3-3 draw, while Bahrain took first place with a 1-0 win over Jordan. .
Bahrain finished with six points thanks to Abdullah Yusuf Helal’s winning goal, while South Korea finished with five points. Jordan, who is in 3rd place with 4 points, also made it through as one of the best teams among the 3rd place teams.
Saudi Arabia, who had already secured a place in the last 16, lost to a goalless draw with Thailand and took the lead in Group F, but Oman failed to advance after drawing 1-1 with Kyrgyzstan.
Oman finished with two points, while Indonesia (three points in Group D) achieved a good result and advanced for the first time as the third-place team along with Syria, Palestine, and Jordan.
Indonesia will play against Australia, while Palestine will play against hosts Qatar. Syria will face the powerful Iran.
South Korea will face Saudi Arabia in the last 16, but coach Jurgen Klinsmann said they did not intentionally finish second to avoid a big clash with Group D runners-up Japan.
Coach Klinsmann told reporters, “We didn’t want to avoid Japan. It was definitely not our plan to concede three goals today. We wanted to pass in first place. That was our goal.” .
“Malaysia played with so much heart and I have to give them credit, but we should have won this game.”
South Korea took the lead in the 21st minute when Jung Woo-young headed in a goal from a corner kick. The goal was initially disallowed as Malaysian keeper Sihan Hazmi scratched the ball out of the air, but VAR confirmed that the ball had crossed the line.
Malaysia equalized six minutes into the second half, winning the ball high up the pitch and allowing Faisal Halim to twist inside the box and score from an angle.
11 minutes later, Malaysia took the lead after Arif Ayman was fouled by Seol Young-woo inside the box and was awarded a penalty after a VAR check.
South Korea’s Son Heung-min said: “With VAR’s decision, we can sit and talk all day long. It’s out of our hands, it’s out of our control. It was the referee who made the decision.” Told.
“Of course you can argue and question decisions, but we have to respect their decisions. They have screens to monitor that.”
However, there was some drama in the final stages of the match, as in the 83rd minute, Lee Kang-in’s free kick into the top corner hit the wooden frame despite Hazmi’s attempt to save, resulting in an own goal.
In stoppage time, South Korea’s referee judged Oh Hyun-kyu to have fouled, and after Son found the spot in the bottom corner, another VAR check awarded him a penalty.
However, in the 15th minute of stoppage time, Romel Morales scored the equalizer with virtually the last kick of the game, sparking wild jubilation among the Malaysian fans.
Kim Pang-gun, Malaysia’s Korean national team coach, said, “This is a great result for us. Congratulations to all the Malaysian fans. Thank you for supporting us. Thank you to all the players for their hard work.”
Coach Klinsmann’s team finished runners-up to Bahrain in Group E, avoiding a match against Japan, who were favorites before the tournament, in their next match in Qatar.
But South Korea have won one and drawn two in their group stage games, conceding six goals in the process, and will need to do even better when they face Roberto Mancini’s Saudi Arabia on Tuesday.
“Next is Saudi Arabia and it’s going to be a battle,” he added.
South Korea vs. Tottenham captain Son thought he had won the eventful match with a penalty in the 94th minute, but Romel Morales came on in the 15th minute of stoppage time and Malaysia pulled out a heroic draw.
Son called the result a “huge wake-up call” as South Korea aims to win the Asian Cup for the first time in 64 years.
South Korean talisman also voiced a demand that the players not be subjected to abuse from fans.
He did not go into details, but said his teammates had received “comments that cannot be repeated.”
Bahrain scored the winning goal in the first half from a counter-attack, with Helal sprinting from the center circle, narrowly beating the keeper and pulling the trigger from outside the box to score the goal.
In the next match, Bahrain will play against Japan, and Jordan will play against Iraq.
Although Saudi Arabia had the upper hand in the match, with Abdullah Radif saving a penalty they earned in the first half and Thailand not being able to take a shot on target, the result was tied and both teams went ahead.
Thailand will play against Uzbekistan in the next round.
Oman began to dream of advancing to the last 16 when Muhsen Al Ghasani scored the first goal from a corner kick in the 8th minute during a scramble inside the 6-yard box.
But those hopes were dashed in the 80th minute when Kyrgyzstan forward Joel Kodjo took advantage of a miscommunication between defender Khalid Al Braiki and goalkeeper Ibrahim Al Muhayni and slotted the ball into an empty net. .