Regional heavyweights Japan, Iraq and Saudi Arabia all suffered surprise defeats as lower-ranked teams dominated Asia's World Cup qualifiers on Wednesday.Three times qualifiers Japan, missing their European-based players, went down 1-0 to Bahrain in Manama with Aala Hubail`s 77th minute strike moving the gritty Gulf side to the top of the Group 2 standings.
Saudi Arabia, who have been to the finals four times, were thrashed 3-0 by Uzbekistan, while the misery continued for unsettled Asian Cup holders Iraq, who are now rooted to the bottom of Group 1 after losing 2-0 to Qatar.Problem-plagued Iran ended their humiliating scoring drought but threw away a two-goal lead to draw with Kuwait.Mark Schwarzer`s late penalty save helped injury-hit newcomers Australia scrape a point away to struggling China to keep the Socceroos top of Group 1.
Middlesbrough keeper Schwarzer looked to have lost Australia the match when he brought down Qu Bo in the area, but he instantly made amends by stopping Shao Jiayi`s spot kick with a minute remaining in high-altitude in Kunming."To lose that match to a late penalty would have been a disaster for us because I thought we deserved to get something out of the game," Schwarzer told Australian television.
In Tashkent, the Saudis lacked their usual firepower and were stunned when the Uzbeks scored three times either side of halftime.Timur Kapadze netted just before the break, Maksim Shatskikh added another on 65 minutes and Server Djeparov converted a spot kick two minutes later to move the Uzbeks three points clear at the top and a step closer to their first finals.Bosnian-born striker Aleksandar Duric scored his third qualifying goal to help Singapore see off Lebanon 2-0 in the other Group 4 match.
South humbledSouth Korea were held to a surprise 0-0 draw by archrivals North Korea in a politically-charged Group 3 qualifier played in Shanghai after a row over flags and national anthems.The draw humbled South Korea, Asia`s most successful World Cup team, but the point was enough to stay top on goal difference ahead of their northern rivals.Turkmenistan were beaten 2-0 at home by Jordan in the other Group 3 game.
Oman struck after just 26 seconds to condemn Thailand to their second successive defeat and all but rule out their chance of reaching their first World Cup. Seconds after the kick off, Ismail Al Ajmi broke free in the area to convert a right-wing cross to defeat a resilient Thai side who failed to find the net in more than a dozen clear-cut chances. "This has been a big boost to our chances of World Cup qualification," Oman`s Uruguayan coach Julio Cesar Ribas told reporters. "The visitors soaked up 89 minutes of constant pressure from the Thais, with goalkeeper Ali Al Habsi fending off a barrage of attacks from strikers Teerathep Winothai and Teerasin Dangda.
"It was a very difficult game, we were under pressure all the time, but we did just enough to win," Al Habsi told Reuters. In the all-Middle East Group 5, in-form part-timers Syria earned a 1-1 draw with Gulf champions the United Arab Emirates.Iran entered their ninth month without a win, despite going two up inside the first five minutes through Alireza Vahedi and Seyed Hosseini. Ahmad Al Azemi pulled one back for Kuwait just before halftime and Fahad Alrashidi levelled on 81 minutes.
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