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Asian heavyweights into next stage as China crash
2008-06-14
SINGAPORE (AFP) - Heavyweights Australia, Japan, the two Koreas, Saudi Arabia and Iran all powered into the final phase of Asian World Cup qualifying on Saturday, but China crashed out after losing 2-1 to Iraq. Australia made sure of their place with a 3-1 win over Qatar to top Group One leaving the Gulf side and Iraq, who clash in Dubai next week, to battle for the second qualifying spot. Japan beat Thailand 3-0 and their progress was assured when Group two rivals Bahrain drew 1-1 with Oman to also make the final stage. North Korea defeated Jordan 2-0 while South Korea eased past Turkmenistan 3-1 as the two neighbours went through from Group Three. Saudi Arabia beat Singapore 2-0 to join Uzbekistan in qualifying from Group Four while Iran ensured top spot in Group 5 with a 2-0 win in Syria. But it was curtains for underachieving China who will finish bottom of Group 1 with coach Vladimir Petrovic's job hanging by a thread. China took the lead in Tianjin when Zhou Haibing slammed a free kick through a crowd of defenders in the 32nd minute. Emad Mohammed equalised seven minutes later before Nashat Akram sealed China's fate in the 65th minute. In Doha, Australia scored twice through Blackburn star Brett Emerton before a 75th minute strike by Liverpool's Harry Kewell earned them a well-deserved victory. Ibrahim Khalfan scored a consolation goal for Qatar in the 90th minute. "We played with great control, especially in the second half," said Pim Verbeek, Australia's Dutch coach. "I think the second goal really set us free. For us the most important thing is we have three points from this match." Hong Yong-Jo scored twice as North Korea beat Jordan 2-0 in Pyongyang to seal not just their place among the final 10 teams but also South Korea's. The South Koreans, semi-finalists in 2002, celebrated their progress with a 3-1 win over Turkmenistan with Kim Do Heon hitting a hat-trick. Saudi Arabia, in their first match under new coach Nasser Al Johar, who replaced the sacked Helio dos Anjos, took the points they needed in a 2-0 win in Singapore. Abdoh Autef and Ahmed Al Fraidi grabbed the goals for the Saudis. "I'm happy with the way we performed considering that I only just took over the team. Given time, this team will do even better," said Al Johar. Uzbekistan, who qualified last week, beat Lebanon 3-0 to maintain their perfect record of five wins. Japan enjoyed a resounding 3-0 defeat of Thailand in Bangkok. The visitors struck first in the 22nd minute when Marcus Tanaka nodded home a corner kick from Yasuhito Endo. Japan doubled their lead in the 38th minute when captain Yuji Nakazawa headed in at the far post and Kengo Nakamura wrapped it up two minutes from time. "Our team controlled the game," said Japan coach Takeshi Okada. "We were trying to do whatever it takes to win. Under these hot and humid conditions, the team played well." Two second-half goals saw Iran book their place in the final round with a 2-0 victory over Syria in Damascus. Gholamreza Rezaei gave the visitors the lead just after the hour mark before Mohsen Khalili sealed the points in the fifth minute of injury time at the end of the game. Saif Mohamed scored a stoppage-time winner as the United Arab Emirates edged Kuwait 3-2 in Kuwait City. The UAE need just a point at home to Syria next week to join Iran in the next round. Asia has four automatic berths in the finals in South Africa in 2010 while the fifth-placed side play off against a team from Oceania.
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