Thu, 28 Oct, 2021

Kuala Lumpur: The Asian Football Confederation’s five representatives at the FIFA World Cup got off to contrasting starts in Russia, with Islamic Republic of Iran and Japan claiming victories, while Australia, Korea Republic and Saudi Arabia suffered defeats.
With all the teams having now played one match, the-AFC.com highlights some of the key statistics among the Asian sides in the first of our World Cup Stats Wraps.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021

Moscow: Ki Sung-yueng will be even more cautious of Mexico when he leads Korea Republic into their meeting with the Latin American side on Saturday after seeing Juan Carlos Osorio’s side hand reigning champions Germany a single-goal defeat in their 2018 FIFA World Cup opener on Sunday.
Korea Republic will need to pick up at least a point against the Mexicans after suffering a 1-0 defeat of their own at the hands of Sweden in Nizhny Novgorod on Monday if they are to harbour hopes of progressing to the knockout phase for the third time in the country’s history.
But the impressive display by the Mexicans at Luzhniki Stadium, when Hirving Lozano’s goal saw off Joachim Low’s side, has left Ki concerned about the challenge that lies ahead for him and his teammates.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021

Kazan: Captain Mile Jedinak says Australia cannot afford to focus solely on dangerman Christian Eriksen when they face Denmark looking for the win that could save their 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia campaign.
A gut-wrenching 2-1 defeat to France in their Group C opener has left the Socceroos targeting a win on Thursday as they seek to qualify from the group stages.
Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Eriksen, who scored 11 of Denmark's goals in qualifying, is the key threat for Age Hareide's side at the Samara Arena.
But Jedinak, who scored from the penalty spot against France, says improving on a disciplined performance - which saw Antoine Griezmann hit a VAR-assisted penalty before an Aziz Behich own goal in the dying minutes - is also key for Australia.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021

Saransk: Japan’s 2-1 victory over Colombia in Group H on Tuesday saw the Samurai Blue become the first Asian team to defeat South American opposition at a FIFA World Cup after an assertive second-half performance against 10 men that yielded numerous chances.
The East Asians could not have got off to a better start when Carlos Sanchez was dismissed for handling Shinji Kagawa’s goalbound effort in the third minute and Kagawa coolly slotted the penalty home.
Colombia responded well and equalised through Juan Quintero before the interval, but Japan came back strongly and secured all three points after Yuya Osako’s decisive goal.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021

Nizhny Novgorod: Korea Republic started well against Sweden in their opening Group F fixture at the FIFA World Cup on Monday but the Scandinavian side soon took control of the game and ran out deserved 1-0 winners.
Korea Republic coach Shin Tae-yong began with a 4-3-3 formation with Son Heung-min occupying the left, Hwang Hee-chan the right and Kim Shin-wook in the centre as the East Asians spent much of the first 15 minutes on the front foot without creating a chance of note.
From then on, though, Sweden took a hold of the game and it seemed only a matter of time before the winning goal arrived, which it duly did when Andreas Granqvist converted a VAR awarded penalty in the 65th minute.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021

Kazan: Australia’s performance in their 2-1 loss to France in their opener at the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia on Saturday has given the Socceroos a confidence boost ahead of their meeting with Denmark in Samara on Thursday, claims central defender Trent Sainsbury.
Aziz Behich’s late own goal, coming after Paul Pogba’s shot deflected off his shin, was the difference between the teams following successful penalty conversions by Antoine Griezmann and Mile Jedinak for their respective sides looked set to see the points shared.
Bert van Marwijk’s side went toe-to-toe with the Euro 2016 finalists in their clash in Kazan and their showing throughout the 90 minutes has left Sainsbury and his teammates looking forward to their match with the Danes.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021

Kazan: Australia battled hard and defended well but were eventually beaten 2-1 by France through a spot-kick and a deflected shot.
Several weeks of preparations were over, and it was time for Bert van Marwijk's Australia side to demonstrate their worth as they opened their 2018 FIFA World Cup campaign against France. A resilient defensive display was on show but two second-half strikes were enough for Les Blues to walk away with the three points.
Having scored three goals in as many matches in their last FIFA World Cup, the Socceroos opened their account courtesy of a Mile Jedinak penalty kick, but more attacking impetus will be required if they are to advance to the next round.