A 3-0 round of 36 made the round of 36 chaotic again! The 10th qualifying team was born, and the national football situation: losing to Thailand = out
The fourth round of the group stage of the World Cup qualifiers in the Asian round of 36 was all over last week, and the Chinese team playing at home defeated the Singapore team 4-1 to get their first victory in 2024 and regain the initiative to qualify. However, in this round of the competition, there was one match that did not go as scheduled, and not long ago, the matter was finally decided!
The match, which could not be played as scheduled, was the focus of the Japanese team's away challenge to the North Korean team. In the first leg between the two teams, Japan defeated North Korea 1-0 and led Group B with three consecutive wins. As long as they draw against North Korea in this round, they will be able to lock up a ticket to the round of 18 one round earlier.
However, no one expected that this crucial battle for the qualification quota did not go ahead as scheduled, and the North Korean side refused the Japanese team's request to enter the country on the grounds of "worrying about the import of Japan's virulent hemolytic streptococcal infectious disease into the country", and the match originally scheduled to be played in Pyongyang, North Korea, was also forced to be postponed. Traditionally, if the home team can't hold a match in the country, then they have to set a neutral venue in advance to ensure that the game is played, but the North Korean Football Association did not have a plan in place before the game. Therefore, FIFA finally decided that the North Korean team voluntarily abandoned the game, and the Japanese team won 3-0!
After getting this crucial three points, the Japanese team also advanced two rounds ahead of schedule and got the ticket to the round of 18 without any suspense. Prior to this, Qatar, Iran, Uzbekistan, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and Australia had already taken the lead. South Korea, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are also basically locked up in the round of 18 due to their significant lead in points and goal difference. So far, 10 teams have successfully advanced to the top 36 of this year's tournament, and the Chinese team can only compete for the last 8 qualifying places.
The good news is that the initiative to qualify is still in our own hands. In the next round of the home game against Thailand, as long as the Chinese team can beat the opponent, then we can qualify one round earlier and successfully enter the round of 18. If they are held to a draw by their opponents, the two teams will have to fight until the final round, and the two sides are likely to end up competing for goal difference, and it is still a big unknown who will qualify. But once the Chinese team loses to the Thai team at home, our World Cup dream may come to an end in advance in the round of 36!
It is worth mentioning that in the life-and-death battle against the Thai team, Wu Lei, the number one star of the Chinese team, will be suspended because of the accumulation of yellow cards.