Korea and Iran, the “strongest and strongest teams” in Asian soccer, are now at the halfway point, completely leading the team without defeat. Japan is also undefeated, but its fifth match has yet to be played. Among the 18 teams in the third qualifying round, Korea, Iran and Japan are the only teams that are undefeated.
While South Korea, which scored its 50th A-match goal with “captain” Son Heung-min’s return, beat Kuwait 3-1 in Group B of the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North Korea-China World Cup, and won four consecutive games, Iran also quelled North Korea’s pursuit to 3-2 and finished five of the 10 games with four wins and one draw.
Qatar, the champion of the Asian Cup, has jumped into a full-fledged competition by defeating Uzbekistan, a strong team in Group A, 3-2. The United Arab Emirates, led by head coach Paulo Bento, defeated Kyrgyzstan 3-0 and recorded two wins, one draw and two losses (7 points). Australia and Saudi Arabia were tied without a goal in Group C. China won 1-0 thanks to Zhang Winning’s “theater goal” in an away match in Bahrain, and dreamed of advancing to the World Cup finals with two consecutive wins after three consecutive losses.
Japan, the strongest team in Group C, will take the lead by seven points if it wins an away match in Indonesia led by head coach Shin Tae-yong on the 15th. It will feature eight thrilling games in Group A, B and C, in which tickets for the first and second places in the group will be given.
◆ Korean soccer’s ‘present and future’ Son Heung-min, Oh Se-hoon, Bae Joon-ho, ‘consecutive goals’ and ‘joint goals’ for the fourth consecutive win… Son Heung-min’s 50th A-match goal ‘achievement’
Returning from injury, “captain” Son Heung-min (32) of Tottenham Hotspur FC scored his 50th A-match goal, tying for second in the overall scoring list of Korean soccer players. Oh Se-hoon (25) of Machida, the future of Korean soccer, scored the first goal of a lightning header to pave the way for a fourth consecutive win. Bae Joon-ho (21) of Stoke City consoled Korean students who finished the CSAT with a net goal.
The South Korean national soccer team, led by head coach Hong Myung-bo, won 3-1 in the fifth Group B away match of the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 FIFA World Cup against Kuwait at the Jabeur Al-Ahmad International Stadium in Kuwait City, Kuwait, at 11 p.m. on the 14th (Korea time), followed by Oh Se-hoon’s header in the 10th minute of the first half, Son Heung-min’s penalty in the 19th minute and Bae Joon-ho’s net in the 29th minute of the second half. Hwang In-beom assisted Oh Se-hoon and Bae Jun-ho’s goals to inspire South Korea’s offense.
Korea, which has won four consecutive World Cup games, has been leading Group B with four wins and one draw, giving the green light to advance to the World Cup finals for the 11th consecutive time. Before the match, Korean players cheered for tomorrow with a video clip of “Way to go!” encouraging test takers who are taking the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) to take the exam. “Thank you for your hard work, everyone,” Son said in an interview after the match. When the team was leading 1-0, Son calmly scored his 50th A-match penalty kick with his right foot in the 19th minute of the first half. As the match ended 3-1, Son’s goal was recorded as the final goal.
Son Heung-min, who tied for second place with Hwang Sun-hong’s record of 50 goals, is expected to break Cha Bum-keun’s 58 goals, who is ranked first in the category. Son Heung-min, who has scored nine goals in this year’s A-match alone, has scored 50 goals in 130 games in 14 years since his debut in the A-match against Syria in December 2010.
Prior to Son Heung-min, Oh scored his first goal in the 10th minute of the first half for South Korea, which had been struggling with Kuwait’s down defense. Hwang In-beom’s long ball to the goalpost rose like a dolphin in the center of Kuwait’s camp and penetrated the top of the opponent’s goal with a header that changed direction. Oh scored his second A-match goal in two consecutive games following the goal in the fourth match against Iraq.
Bae, who replaced Son in the 19th minute in the second half, scored his second A-match goal by scoring a wedge goal that dampened Kuwait’s pursuit. The 21-year-old Bae has brightened Korea’s future by scoring attack points in three consecutive matches.
South Korea will conclude this A-match by playing the 6th away game against the Palestinians in Amman, Jordan, at 11 p.m. on the 19th.
◆ Iran wins 3-2 over North Korea despite numerical inferiority… Qatar overcomes Uzbekistan 3-2 at home
Iran passed the halfway point with four wins and one draw with a 3-2 victory over North Korea in the fifth Group A match at Lao National Stadium in Vientiane, the capital of Laos. Iran took the lead with Medi Gayei’s first goal in the 29th minute of the first half in an away match, which was played as North Korea’s home game in Laos, a neutral area, and finished the first half with a 3-0 lead with Mohamed Mohevi’s consecutive goals in the 41st and 45th minutes of the first half.
The mood of Iran’s complete victory turned into a close game when defender Shoja Karilzadeh was sent off at the seventh minute of the second half. North Korea, aided by Iranian Mehdi Taremi’s own goal at the 11th minute of the second half, was followed by an additional goal by Kim Yu-song three minutes later. However, North Korea’s Ri Jo-guk’s shot hit the crossbar at the 29th minute of the second half, which was hardly expected.
Iran won a penalty in the 22nd minute of the second half, but Taremi’s shot was blocked by North Korean goalkeeper Kang Joo-hyuk and failed to escape.
Due to the defeat, North Korea had no win in five consecutive World Cup qualifying matches, including two draws and three losses (score point 2), ranking the lowest among the six teams in Group A. North Korea is aiming to advance to the finals for the first time in 14 years following the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Iran, which is seeking its fourth consecutive World Cup finals, had 13 points (four wins and one draw), and was the only team that had no loss in Group A.
Qatar, the champion of the Asian Cup, defeated Uzbekistan 3-2 at home, laying the groundwork for a reversal. Qatar, which had a sluggish start, will tie the UAE with two wins, one draw and two losses (seven points), and will be able to secure its second place in the group in the remaining five matches.
The UAE, led by Bento, won 3-0 at home against Kyrgyzstan.
◆ China ranks fourth in ‘two consecutive wins’… and dreams of advancing to the World Cup finals
China defeated Bahrain to secure its second consecutive win, increasing its chances of advancing to the World Cup finals. China won the fifth Group C match against Bahrain 1-0 thanks to Zhang Winning’s dramatic winning goal in the second half extra time at the Bahrain National Stadium in Lipa, Bahrain on Sunday.
China had a difficult game by giving Bahrain the lead throughout the game, but laughed with the winning goal that came right before the end of the game. In the 46th minute of the second half, Zhang Winning gave his team three points with a right-footed shot. With the victory, China won two consecutive games after three consecutive losses and secured six points to move to fourth place in the group. It was sluggish with three consecutive losses until the third game, but it set up a turning point by winning 2-1 against Indonesia led by head coach Shin Tae-yong in the fourth game.
China is tied with Australia and Saudi Arabia (one win, three draws and one loss), and the remaining five matches will determine the team’s advance to the 온라인카지노 World Cup finals. China, which is ranking fourth by a margin, is competing with Australia and Saudi Arabia, excluding the strongest team. Japan, which has played one less match, will have a showdown with Indonesia on Saturday.
