Dogged Bahrain side persevered in until the last minute and finally beat South Korea 2-1 in a crucial match of Asian Cup group D here on Sunday, creating another stunning result in the tournament.
South Koreans had a flying start but heart-struck end. Only four minutes into the game, Kim Do Heon received a head cross in the front of Bahrain's box and made an easy goal.
The Koreans began to control the match but squandered too many scoring chances to widen the lead.
They paid the price in 43rd minute when Bahrain defender Salman Isa beat Koreans' offside trap and scored with a small angle shot.
In the second half time, the Koreans launched dozens of attacks but none of them turned to a goal.
On 85 minutes, by dint of Korean defender's low-grade misplay, Ismaeel Abdullatif blasted a low shot home in the box to stun not only South Korean players but also spectators and TV viewers.
Bahrain player withstood the high pressure from the opponents in the last 10 minutes and made the second biggest stunning result in the group stage of 2007 Asian Cup after Iraq crushed Australia 3-1 in Bangkok.
After two rounds of group matches, the situation of Group D now is very delicate. All the four teams still have opportunities to enter the next phase.
Following are the standings of Group D after Sunday's match (tabulated under matches played, won, drawn, lost, goals for, against and points):
Saudi Arabia
2 1 1 0 3 2 4
Indonesia
2 1 0 1 3 3 3
Bahrain
2 1 0 1 3 3 3
South Korea
2 0 1 1 2 3 1
Note: The top two will qualify for the knockout stage. Teams on same points will be divided first by head-to-head results, then by goal difference.
Source: Xinhua
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