Heartbreak for Jordan as late own goal helps South Korea draw Asian Cup clash

Mistake from Yazan Al Arab in 91st minute results in 2-2 draw at Al Thumama Stadium

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  South Korea's Jeong Woo-yeong, left, carries the ball after Jordan's Yazan Al Arab scored an own goal in their Asian Cup match at the Al Thumama Stadium in Qatar on Saturday, January 20, 2024. AP

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  Jordan's Yazan Al Naimat celebrates with teammates after scoring his team's second goal in their Asian Cup match against South Korea at the Al Thumama Stadium. AFP

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  Jordan's Yazan Al Naimat after scoring his team's second against South Korea. AFP

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  South Korea's Lee Ki-je vies for the ball with Jordan's Musa Al Tamari in Doha on Saturday. AFP

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  South Korea's Lee Ki-je fights for the ball with Jordan's Musa Al Tamari. AFP

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  South Korea's Kim Min-jae looks dejected after Jordan's Yazan Al Naimat scores their second goal. Reuters

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  Jordan's Abdallah Nasib, Yazan Al Arab, and Salem Al Ajalin after South Korea conceded an own goal at the Al Thumama Stadium. AFP

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  Jordan's Yazan Al Arab celebrates his side's first goal. AP

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  South Korea's Son Heung-min after scoring a penalty. AP

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  South Korea's Son Heung-min scores a penalty. AP

South Korea were lucky to escape with a point as Jordan were denied a deserved victory after a 91st-minute own goal from Yazan Al Arab gifted their opponents a 2-2 draw in their Asian Cup match at Al Thumama Stadium on Saturday.

South Korea took the lead when Son Heung-min was brought down in the box by Ihsan Haddad, and after a lengthy VAR check, the Tottenham forward kept his focus amid loud boos to score.

But Jordan did not crack and they were rewarded for their constant pressure in the 37th minute when South Korea's Park Yong-Woo headed the ball into his own net from a corner.

Jordan were denied a penalty in first-half added time when Musa Al Taamari was felled as he was bearing down on goal, but seconds later Yazan Al Naimat made it 2-1 when he unleashed a half-volley from outside the box into the bottom corner.

South Korea raised the tempo in the second half but it took 45 minutes before they finally found an equaliser when Hwang In-beom's shot was turned into the net by Jordan centre-back Al Arab.

The result leaves both teams on four points from two games. A win for either team would have sent them through to the knockout rounds with a game to spare.

South Korea boss Jurgen Klinsmann was forced into one change from the opening game, bringing in goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo for Kim Seung-gyu.

Kim suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during a training session and has been ruled out of the rest of the tournament.

The Koreans also had five players on yellow cards from their game against Bahrain.

Klinsmann's side beat Bahrain 3-1 in their opening match and face Malaysia in their final group game on Thursday with qualification for the last 16 still within their grasp.

Jordan, who beat Malaysia 4-0 and face Bahrain on the same day, are still in the hunt as well.

"Overall 2-2 is a fair result and gives both teams a chance to win the group," Klinsmann said.

"We took the tempo out of the game after going 1-0 up and lost battles on the field to Jordan, which made it difficult. But those are the games you learn a lot from. Going into the next round is a high priority, but it was a very intense game."

His counterpart Hussein Ammouta remained upbeat despite the heartbreak.

"It is normal to make mistakes at the beginning and the end of the match, South Korea took excellent technical decisions in attack," Ammouta said.

"We spared no effort to preserve the result. Eventually we think it's a positive result. What's most important is the confidence and high spirits that will allow us to go forward."