S. Korea to face Syria in quest to advance to World Cup finals

The confirmation on whether South Korea will advance to the World Cup finals for 10 consecutive events has been delayed.

South Korea beat Lebanon 1-0 in the seventh match of the final qualifying round for the 2022 Qatar World Cup on Thursday to earn overall winning points of 17 (five wins and two draws). The United Arab Emirates also beat Syria 2-0 on Friday to earn winning points of 9 (two wins, three draws and two losses).

With three matches in the final qualifying round yet to be played, the gap in winning points between second-ranked South Korea and third-ranked United Arab Emirates in Group A remain at eight, as South Korea failed to confirm‎ No. 1 spot in the group. If the United Arab Emirates wins all three remaining matches and South Korea loses all three remaining games, the rankings of the two countries can be reversed. However, if South Korea beats Syria in its eighth match, which will take place in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday, South Korea will advance to the World Cop finals regardless of the results of the other remaining matches.

Syria is ranked the lowest in Group A by recording two draws and five losses (winning points of two). Syria has failed to secure even a single win in the final qualifying rounds along with Iraq (four draws, three losses and winning points of four). The team has scored five goals and lost 13 goals to become the team that has lost most goals in Group A. Syria is ranked 86th in FIFA rankings while South Korea is ranked 33rd. Since Syria has been significantly underperforming than South Korea, experts predict South Korea will easily defeat Syria.


Won-Hong Lee bluesky@donga.com