AL WAKRAH: Malaysia scored deep into added time to hold Korea Republic 3-3 in their AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023Group E clash at the Al Janoub Stadium on Thursday.
The result meant Korea Republic finished second behind Bahrain, who edged Jordan 1-0 in the other match.
For Malaysia, the result meant ending their campaign on a high note after having suffered defeats to Jordan and Bahrain.
Both teams made changes to their respective defences with Lee Ki-je and Matthew Davies out injured, with Korea Republic giving first starts to Kim Tae-hwan, Jeong Woo-yeong and Kim Young-gwon for the Koreans, while Daniel Ting and Brendan Gan were in the Malaysian lineup.
Despite dominating possession from the first blow of the whistle, Korea Republic took 15 minutes to register their first shot on target, with captain Son Heung-min weaving his way into the penalty box but his shot was tipped over the bar by Syihan Hazmi.
The Koreans took the lead five minutes later as Jeong rose highest to nod home from a corner kick. Malaysian custodian Syihan looked to have clawed the ball out but a VAR check determined that the ball had already crossed the line.
Holding the lead and with Malaysia content to defend deep, the Taeguk Warriors took the pace out of the game with controlled possession for the rest of the half with Cho Gue-sung’s header two minutes from halftime the only time they came close to doubling their advantage.
Despite Korea Republic starting on the front foot, Malaysia equalised six minutes into the second half when Darren Lok stole the ball off Hwang In-beom. Arif Aiman’s initial shot was blocked but Faisal Halim got on the rebound and despite being forced wide, scored from an acute angle into the far bottom corner.
Malaysia took the lead two minutes shy of the hour mark after VAR check confirmed Seol Young-woo’s foul on Arif in the penalty box, with the Johor Darul Ta’zim player stepping up to tuck away the ensuing penalty.
Korea Republic threw on Hwang Hee-chan into the mix and the Wolverhampton Wanderers player almost restored parity in the 66th minute but saw his fierce volley from the edge of the box turned away for a corner kick.
The Korean onslaught came to fruition second minutes from the end when Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Lee Kang-in produced a wonderful free-kick that Syihan managed to get his hand to but was unable to keep it out of the net.
Jurgen Klinsmann's side thought they had won the game in the second minute of stoppage time when Junior Eldstal’s foul on Oh Hyeon-gyu was picked up by a VAR review and Son converted the spot-kick.
However, Malaysia capped a wonderful performance when substitute Romel Morales struck at the very end of stoppage time, sending the straight into the bottom corner to snatch a deserved point for his side.
