South Korea’s national football team has lost 3-2 to Qatar in a critical qualifier for the 2018 FIFA World Cup to be held in Russia.
 
At the Group A final qualifying round match held at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha on Tuesday, Hassan Al Haydos put the host team on the scoreboard with a 25th-minute goal, before Akram Afif doubled the lead in the 51st minute.
 
Team Korea answered with a goal from Ki Sung-yueng in the 62nd-minute, and Hwang Hee-chan leveled the score eight minutes later. However Al Haydos converted a pass and scored a second goal to seal Qatar’s victory.
 
South Korea managed to keep its runner-up position in Group A after third-place Uzbekistan lost to group-leader Iran 2-0 in Tehran on Tuesday.
 
Iran has already secured one of the two spots to the 2018 World Cup given to the group. South Korea’s hopes to play at the quadrennial event for a ninth consecutive time will remain in limbo until the last of the group matches are played.
 
With four victories, three losses and a draw, South Korea is only a point ahead of Uzbekistan, and will play its two remaining matches against the toughest opponents in the group.
 
Team Korea will play Iran in Seoul on August 31st and Uzbekistan in Tashkent on September fifth.