- Home
- World...
World Cup 2026 Asian qualifiers: Japan march on, Indonesia suffer 99th-minute heartbreak
Crystal Palace midfielder Daichi Kamada said an eighth straight World Cup appearance will be within Japan's grasp if they beat Australia next week, after extending their perfect record in qualifying.
Japan beat Saudi Arabia 2-0 in Jeddah on Thursday to make it three wins out of three in the decisive third round of Asian qualifying.
Japan have pulled five points clear at the top of Group C, ahead of a chasing pack led by the Australians, who moved ahead of Saudi Arabia on goal difference after a 3-1 win in Adelaide over China in Tony Popovic's first game since replacing Graham Arnold as coach last month.
Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team.
The top two teams secure direct passage to the 2026 World Cup and the third- and fourth-placed countries facing another qualifying phase. The bottom two teams are eliminated.
Japan face second-place Australia in Saitama on Tuesday and Kamada said they can all but book their place at the finals in the United States, Canada and Mexico with a win.
"We're playing our next game at home in front of lots of fans, and we have to win," he was quoted as saying by Japanese media.
"If we win the next game, the World Cup will start to feel very close for us, so we want to work hard."
Kamada scored Japan's first goal against the Saudis in front of more than 56,000 fans at King Abdullah Sports City, before substitute Koki Ogawa cemented the win with a header eight minutes from time.
Indonesia, meanwhile, were denied victory by hosts Bahrain deep into stoppage time when Mohamed Marhoon scored his second of the game to earn his side a 2-2 draw with the Southeast Asians, who have now drawn their three matches.
South Korea defeated Jordan 2-0 in Amman to move top of Group B as goals from Lee Jae-sung and Oh Hyeong-gu gave coach Hong Myung-bo his second win in a row and lifted the Koreans to seven points from three matches.
A header from Lee gave South Korea, missing injured captain Son Heung-min, the lead in the 38th minute and Oh doubled the advantage 23 minutes into the second half when he wrong-footed Yazeed Abulaila to score from inside the area.
Iraq joined the Koreans on seven points but trail on goal difference as Aymen Hussein's left-foot shot in the 31st minute secured Jesus Casas' team a 1-0 win over Palestine.
Oman, meanwhile, eased to a 4-0 win over Kuwait in Muscat to move off the bottom of Group B with Abdulrahman Al Mushaifri scoring twice for Rashid Jabar's side.
In Group A, Uzbekistan were unable to find a way past Iran's defence despite the visitors having only 10 players for the final 35 minutes of their top-of-the-table clash as they played out a 0-0 draw in Tashkent.
Defender Saleh Hardani was shown a red card 10 minutes into the second half for a dangerous tackle on Uzbekistan captain Eldor Shomurodov.
Asian champions Qatar won their first game of the third round with a 3-1 victory over Kyrgyzstan to draw level with the United Arab Emirates on four points as Paulo Bento's side were held to a 1-1 draw by North Korea.
More Articles from SCMP
Hong Kong fund managers eye Middle East, Southeast Asia investors amid market rally
2024 US congressional races: what to expect and how China plays a role
Mayoral bid by Philippines’ Duterte signals dominance of political dynasties
Hong Kong authorities arrest 19 people in 4 operations targeting illegal workers
This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (www.scmp.com), the leading news media reporting on China and Asia.
Copyright (c) 2024. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
- https://www.msn.com/en-sg/sport/other/world-cup-2026-asian-qualifiers-japan-march-on-indonesia-suffer-99th-minute-heartbreak/ar-AA1s4qgT?ocid=00000000
Related
Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open: event has come a long way, WTA’s Clare Wood says
Former British No 1 says she had seen improvements in organisation and facilities 'as soon as she arrived' to oversee event for second time. Women's tennis world governing body officials have nothing but praise for the Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open as the city embraces its second WTA 250 event in as many years. The nine-day tournament, which kic...
SportBarcelona crush Real, City go top, Brentford in 7-goal thriller, what happened overnight
Late goals order of the day across Europe, except at the Bernabeu Stadium, where Real Madrid's 42-game win streak came to a shuddering halt Late goals were seemingly the order of the day across Europe on Saturday. Stoppage time decided games in London, Brighton and Bremen, but nothing came close to the match in Lille. The French side scored a 98th-...
SportEnglish Premier League faces unprecedented regulation if UK government bill gets go-ahead
A new regulator can determine how EPL clubs distribute money to smaller clubs, and can ensure they consult fans before raising ticket prices A new football regulator will have the power to decide how England's lucrative Premier League distributes money to smaller clubs, giving the regulator greater control over the country's most popular sport. The...
SportWorld Aquatics Swimming World Cup: getting tickets for family a struggle for Pan Zhanle
Double Olympic champion says his parents were also not in attendance when he broke the 100m freestyle record at the Paris Olympics Double Olympic gold medal winner Pan Zhanle says he struggled to get tickets for his family at the World Aquatics Swimming World Cup in Shanghai this weekend and had to call on friends to help him get them. Speaking aft...
SportMichael Jordan: Gambling, murder, and conspiracy behind the fall of the NBA star
Michael Jordan: Gambling, murder, and conspiracy behind the fall of the NBA star
SportRonaldo on target, Hong Kong heartache, what happened overnight in the world of sport
Cristiano Ronaldo scores goal No 906, South Africa wait to learn World Cup fate, Scotland find new way to suffer, Hong Kong hopes dashed Choosing the right time to walk away is one of the toughest tasks for any sportsperson. Adding to the complexity of the decision for those individuals is that their retirement date is a matter for public discussio...
SportWorld Cup 2026 Asian qualifiers: Japan march on, Indonesia suffer 99th-minute heartbreak
Midfielder Daichi Kamada says his team can all but book their place in the finals for the eight straight time by beating Australia on Tuesday Crystal Palace midfielder Daichi Kamada said an eighth straight World Cup appearance will be within Japan's grasp if they beat Australia next week, after extending their perfect record in qualifying. Japan be...
Sport