DOHA: Harimau Malaya showed their stripes and almost upset two-time champions South Korea when they drew 3-3 in their final Group E match of the 2023 Asian Cup at Al Janoub Stadium here yesterday.
Midfielder Jeong Woo-yeong drew first blood for South Korea in the 21st minute before Malaysia fought back to lead after 17 minutes in the second half with goals from Mohamad Faisal Abdul Halim’s strike and Arif Aiman Mohd Hanapi’s penalty.
However, South Korea equalised with just 10 minutes of regulation time left through an own goal by goalkeeper Ahmad Syihan Hazmi Mohamed, before taking the lead at 3-2 through a penalty by Tottenham Hotspur star Son Heung-min in added time.
Substitute and naturalised player Romel Morales emerged as the hero for Malaysia when he scored in the 15th minute of added time to earn Malaysia the draw.
The result meant South Korea remained in second spot in the group with five points while Malaysia ended the tournament with one point and the satisfaction of scoring three goals against one of Asia’s giants.
Bahrain finished as the group champions after beating Jordan 1-0 to amass six points but the defeat did not prevent Jordan, who have four points, from qualifying for the round of 16 as one of the four best third-placed teams.
South Korea served an early warning when skipper Son made a quick run into the penalty box and evaded two players before letting fly a powerful shot in the 15th minute but his effort was saved by Ahmad Syihan.
Jurgen Klinsmann’s charges finally took the lead in the 21st minute when Jeong headed in a corner kick which seemed to have been saved by Ahmad Syihan but the ball crossed the goal line on the right corner, as confirmed by VAR.
Malaysia, who lost their first two matches, started well in the second half and needed only six minutes to equalise through Mohamad Faisal following Arif Aiman’s failure to finish off a chance created by Darren Lok’s pressure on the opponents’ goalmouth.
The crowd went wild when the VAR decided to award Malaysia a penalty after Arif Aiman was brought down by Seol Young-woo. The 22-year-old Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) player then coolly slotted the ball past Jo Hyeon-woo in the 62nd minute.
South Korea, who dominated ball possession at 86-14 per cent, were finally rewarded for their constant attacks after Ahmad Syihan deflected the ball into the net while trying to save Lee Kang-in’s beautiful free kick in the 83rd minute.
The added time of 15 minutes saw two more goals, with Son converting a penalty after Oh Hyeon-Gyu was brought down by defender Junior Eldstal, and Morales scoring the last-minute equaliser to foil South Korea’s ambition to collect three points.
This was the second encounter between Malaysia and South Korea in the group stage of the Asian Cup, with the two teams drawing 1-1 in the 1980 edition in Kuwait. Former forward Zulkifli Hamzah scored the equaliser for Malaysia then.
The last time the two countries met in a competitive match was in the World Cup qualifying round which saw Malaysia losing 0-3 in 1989.
Team standings after last night’s matches:
Group A
| P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | |
| Qatar | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 9 |
| Tajikistan | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| China | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Lebanon | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 1 |
Group B
| P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | |
| Australia | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 7 |
| Uzbekistan | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| Syria | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| India | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
Group C
| P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | |
| Iran | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 9 |
| UAE | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 4 |
| Palestine | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 4 |
| Hong Kong | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 7 | 0 |
Group D
| P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | |
| Iraq | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 9 |
| Japan | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 5 | 6 |
| Indonesia | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 3 |
| Vietnam | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 8 | 0 |
Group E
| P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | |
| Bahrain | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| South Korea | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 6 | 5 |
| Jordan | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 4 |
| MALAYSIA | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 1 |
Group F
| P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | |
| Saudi Arabia | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 6 |
| Thailand | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| Oman | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Kyrgyzstan | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
The top two teams from each group, as well as the four best third-placed teams will advance to the round of 16. — BERNAMA
