Australia are still in second place in Group B but their continued struggle to get wins have them in a precarious position. In Group A, South Korea and Uzbekistan remained at the top. Here’s a recap of today’s AFC qualifiers.
AFC World Cup qualifying: Australia hurt by home draw against Oman
Australia needed a late comeback to salvage a point against Oman as the Socceroos continued to stumble. Uzbekistan and South Korea both won and remained at the top of Group A.
South Korea 2-1 Qatar
South Korea held on to second place in their group and their advantage over Iran and Qatar with a 2-1 victory against Qatar today. Korea looked on the verge of settling for a draw but were saved by a stoppage time winner from Heung-Min Son. Lee Keun-Ho put Korea ahead in the 59th minute but Qatar's Khalfan Ibrahim answered back four minutes later.
Australia 2-2 Oman
Australia averted an outright disaster at home overcoming a 2-0 second half deficit to earn a draw against Oman. The result keeps Australia in second place in Group B but their hold is a tenious one, based only on goal differential. Oman's Abdul Aziz Mubarak gave the visitors an early lead in the 6th minute and they doubled their advantage four minutes after halftime thanks to an own-goal from Mile Jedinak.
With their World Cup dreams potentially on the line the Socceroos staged a furious comeback. Tim Cahill cut the lead to 2-1 in the 51st minute and Brett Holman scored the equalizer five minutes before full time to salvage a point. There's little doubt at this point that the Aussies are still in danger of failing to qualify but for the moment, they are safe. Three more games this summer will decide their fate.
Uzbekistan 1-0 Lebanon
Server Djeparov’s 64th minute goal was all Uzbekistan needed as they kept their hopes of qualifying for the 2014 World Cup strong. The victory is Uzbekistan’s third of this round and allows them to remain a point ahead of South Korea for first place in Group A. There’s a good chance Korea will jump into the top spot as they’ve played one less game but since the top two teams from the group advance, things are looking good for Mirjalol Qosimov and his side.
Click the link for a full match report.
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