LAST 16
If the group stage was full of excitement and drama, the second round didn’t disappoint either.
The game of the round was Jordan’s 3-2 win over Iraq. It was finely poised at 1-1 until Aymen Hussein got his sixth goal of the tournament with 14 minutes remaining to put Iraq ahead. It really looked as if Iraq were recreating their 2007 triumph but then Hussein got carried away with his goal celebration, which saw him sit down and copy Jordan’s first-half ceremony where the players sat down and mimed eating. The Iranian referee had enough and sent off the forward. Jordan scored twice in stoppage-time to go through. Iraq protested the referee’s decision, leading the AFC to issue a statement that it was all correct “for excessively delaying the restart of the game”. Another statement was made, banning a number of Iraqi journalists who had accosted coach Jesus Casas in the post-match press conference. Australia’s 4-0 win over Indonesia was much more sedate. Indonesia asked questions early on but in the end it was a stroll for the Socceroos.
Tajikistan were celebrating again after a penalty shootout win over the United Arab Emirates, their first-ever knockout stage game. The UAE had equalised in the final seconds to ensure extra-time and penalties, but the Central Asians deservedly triumphed.
Japan were much too good for Bahrain, winning 3-1, and the sight of Kaoru Mitoma coming off the bench to make a difference was ominous for the rest, while Thailand may regret being too timid against Uzbekistan. It was only in the second half that the War Elephants went at the White Wolves, but it was too little too late and Uzbekistan ran out 2-1 winners and looked like a team that could go all the way.
Iran needed a penalty shootout to get past a stubborn Syrian side, a job made harder by a late red card for star striker Mehdi Taremi. Qatar were too good for Palestine, winning 2-1 to put an end to an historic and impressive run.
Then there was South Korea’s epic clash with Saudi Arabia in a game that saw Jurgen Klinsmann face Roberto Mancini. This match made headlines for how it ended, but before that Saudi Arabia had much the better of it with young striker Abdullah Radif scoring. With about ten minutes left, the Green Falcons sat back and Korea launched attack after attack and the only surprise was that it took until the 99th minute for the goal to come, through substitute Cho Gue-sung. It then went to penalties and after two Saudi failures, Mancini turned and wandered down the tunnel before Hwang Hee-chan fired home the winning spot kick. The Italian later apologised, claiming that he thought it was all over.
QUARTER-FINALS
South Korea did something similar in the last eight. They fell behind to Au
