Japan is almost certainly about to become the first team to qualify for the World Cup, while Uzbekistan have put Iran and South Korea into a bit of a sticky situation. Iraq and Qatar were also victorious in their matches to keep things very interesting throughout both qualifying groups.
AFC 2014 World Cup qualifying: Uzbekistan stun Iran, Japan steal late win
Japan is all but in the World Cup after they defeated Oman late, while Uzbekistan shocked Iran in Tehran.
Oman 1-2 Japan
This one was a heartbreaker for the hosts. Hiroshi Kiyotake scored the opener off of a scramble following a thrilling first 20 minutes with chances for both sides. Oman thought they were going to steal a point when Ahmed Kano netted an unexpected equalizer in the 77th minute, but their hopes for a draw were killed off in the dying minutes. Shinji Okazaki turned in a cross at the end of a brilliant move in the 90th minute, snatching a win for Japan. They have 13 points through five games, which should be good enough for second in Group B even if they fail to earn another point. Oman are still third in the group.
Iraq 1-0 Jordan
The Iraqis rescued their qualifying hopes, pulling level with Oman and Australia with this victory. They left it late, but Hammadi Ahmad eventually found an 86th minute winner.
Qatar 1-0 Lebanon
Lebanon look like the team least likely to make their way out of Asian qualifying at the moment. They sit bottom of Group A after a tough fought, but expected loss to Qatar. Naturalized Uruguayan Sebastián Soria scored his third goal of qualifying to grab three points for his side.
Iran 0-1 Uzbekistan
With South Korea sitting dormant during this round of qualifiers, Uzbekistan stunningly fired themselves to the top of the Group A table with a victory in Tehran. Iran, who defeated Uzbekistan away when the teams last met, was coming off of a win over South Korea and was expected to win again at home, but Ulugbek Bakayev netted an improbable winner for the visitors as they held on for a clean sheet. Uzbekistan sit on eight points, ahead of Iran, South Korea and Qatar, who all have seven. South Korea has a game in hand, and the top two teams automatically qualify for the World Cup.
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