Japan and Australia shared the spoils in Asian World Cup qualifying yesterday but there was a crucial win for North Korea, who beat Saudi Arabia to leave Nasser al Johar’s side in serious trouble.
The Socceroos will feel fortunate to come away from Yokohama with a 0-0 draw after soaking up long periods of pressure, but it leaves them well positioned in Group 1 with 10 points from four games.
With three of their remaining four games at home, Australia will be confident of making their second consecutive World Cup finals.
PHOTO: AFP
Japan remain hot on their heels with two wins and two draws for eight points, while Mahmood Abdulrahman scored a 94th minute winner for Bahrain in their 1-0 victory over Uzbekistan in Tashkent.
It leaves the Uzbeks virtually out of the running with just one point, while Bahrain remain alive on four points, alongside Qatar.
The hosts, spurred by a capacity crowd at Tashkent’s 25,000-capacity Pakhtakor stadium, seized the initiative from the start but failed to create any serious threat.
Bahrain were happy to sit back, soak up the pressure and go on the counter-attack — a policy they continued even after Uzbekistan upped the tempo in a second half that saw the visitors pinned back in their own area.
Uzbekistan’s lack of killer instinct in front of goal would prove their downfall in the match, which looked to be heading for a goalless draw until Bahrain struck in the dying moments.
In the fourth minute of injury time Bahrain were awarded a free kick and Abdulrahman’s well-struck 20m drive found its way into the net over Uzbekistan ’keeper Ignatiy Nesterov.
Only the top two teams from each group qualify for South Africa while the third-placed teams play each other with the winner facing Oceania champions New Zealand for the final World Cup berth.
In Pyongyang, North Korea’s drive towards their first World Cup finals since 1966 stayed on track with a vital 1-0 win over Saudi Arabia, leaving their opponents with a massive uphill task to qualify.
Mun In-guk was the North Korean hero, toe-poking the ball under Saudi keeper Waleed Abdullah in the 29th minute to put his side on seven points in Group 2 after four games.
The Saudis, who have made the last four World Cup finals, are now in big trouble with just four points and four games to play, starting with a tough trip to Tehran next month to face Iran in a must-win match.
In Tehran yesterday, Manchester United star Park Ji-sung came to South Korea’s rescue with an 81st minute strike to cancel out Javad Nekounam’s goal to give them a battling 1-1 draw with Iran.
Group leaders South Korea now have eight points while Iran slip to third place on six points behind North Korea. The United Arab Emirates already look dead and buried with just one point.
On a chilly night in Yokohama, the home team got off to the better start, with striker Keiji Tamada getting the first shot on target in the fourth minute.
Celtic midfielder Shunsuke Nakamura was a lurking danger and unleashed a trademark shot only to see it go just over, then Yuto Nagatomo was hauled down in the 36th minute but Yasuhito Endo couldn’t capitalize from the free-kick.
The Australians surprisingly had to wait until first-half injury time for their first clear-cut shot when Everton dangerman Tim Cahill went close.
But they came out with a more aggressive attitude after the break and piled on the pressure before Japan fought back with substitute forward Yoshito Okubo and Endo hitting sizzling shots to keep goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer busy.
Despite creating plenty of chances as they game wore on, Japan couldn’t find the breakthrough.
North Korea lack experience at international level and on paper they were the underdogs against Saudi Arabia, but they have re-emerged from the wilderness during this qualifying campaign.
Played on an artificial surface in freezing temperatures at the Kim Il-sung Stadium in Pyongyang, the Saudis had the opening chance when Tassier al Jassim picked up the ball in the box but failed to produce the killer touch.
The Koreans soon woke up and were dangerous on the break.
Their patience paid off when captain Hong Yon-jo’s lovely backheel found Mun, with the midfielder making no mistake to put his team 1-0 in front, a lead they defended admirably.
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to
RSS