South Korea can secure their place in the round of 16 of the Asian Cup when they face Malaysia on Thursday at Al Janoub Stadium.

Following a 2-2 draw with Jordan on matchday two, the Tigers of Asia are second in Group E with four points, while Malaysia were officially eliminated, losing 1-0 to Bahrain.

Match preview

© Reuters

It was a great escape for South Korea on matchday two, as an own-goal in stoppage time was enough to give them a single point when all looked lost.

That has them in a much better position to advance into the next round, currently a point ahead of Bahrain for second and facing a side in Malaysia who are 107 places below their #23 ranking, according to FIFA.

South Korea currently have a goal differential of +2 at this tournament, which means there is a good chance they will get one of the four third-place spots available even if they lose this fixture.

Heading into this fixture, Jurgen Klinsmann's men are riding a 10-match unbeaten run in all competitions and have not lost an Asian Cup group game since 2007 (2-1 to Bahrain).

We rarely saw them under duress defensively prior to the start of this tournament, though they have not been quite so sharp lately, conceding more goals in the Asian Cup group phase (three) than they had allowed in their nine competitive matches played before that.

If Jordan were to defeat Bahrain in their final group fixture, it would mark the first time the Tigers of Asia will have failed to win their group since 2011.

© Reuters

Despite being in decent form heading into this tournament, unbeaten in three competitive matches, it has all gone wrong for Malaysia at the Asian Cup.

On Saturday, they were a lot sharper defensively than in their opening game against Jordan (4-0 loss), and they will feel hard done by to come away with nothing, conceding in the fifth minute of stoppage time, moments before the final whistle.

After Thursday, Kim Pan-gon can devote his attention to 2026 World Cup qualifying, where they lead their group with maximum points from their first two fixtures.

While they will have never made it beyond the group stage of this tournament, there is still a chance for them to salvage something, as Harimau Malaya have not won an Asian Cup group fixture since 1980 (2-0 over the United Arab Emirates).

Winning in this competition is something we have rarely seen from them, and scoring goals has been scarce as well, with Malaysia failing to find the back of the net in five Asian Cup group fixtures this century.

They have not defeated South Korea since a World Cup qualifier in March 1985 (1-0), which was also the last time Harimau Malaya scored against them.

Team News

© Reuters

Kim Seung-gyu is out for the rest of the tournament after the South Korean goalkeeper suffered a torn ACL in training ahead of their match with Jordan, with Jo Hyeon-woo replacing him on matchday two, while Hwang Hee-chan sat out with a hip injury.

Kim Young-gwon has 105 caps for the national team, two fewer than Park Sung-hwa for 10th all-time, Lee Jae-sung is now at 80 and Kim Jin-su is one away from 70.

Captain Son Heung-min scored from the penalty spot on matchday two, his 42nd with the national team, before an own goal from Park Yong-woo evened the score at one, but Jordan repaid the favour in the second half with an own goal courtesy of Yazan Al-Arab as both teams shared the spoils.

Malaysia made four changes to their opening lineup on matchday two, with Shahrul Saad, Dominic Tan, Syamer Kutty Abba and Paulo Josue coming into the starting lineup, replacing Junior Eldstal, Afiq Fazail, Darren Lok and Romel Morales.

Natxo Insa and Morales each made their second appearances for the national team over the weekend, while captain Matthew Davies is only one cap away from 50.

Syihan Hazmi has conceded five goals in two group fixtures, facing three efforts on target in their narrow defeat versus Bahrain.

South Korea possible starting lineup:
Hyeon-woo; Young-woo, Seung-hyun, Min-jae, Jin-su; Kang-in, Jin-seop, Woo-yeong, Jae-sung; Hyeon-gyu, Heung-min

Malaysia possible starting lineup:
Hazmi; Davies, Tan, Cools, Eldstal, Corbin-Ong; Fazail, Gan, Halim; Morales, Lok

We say: South Korea 4-0 Malaysia

The Koreans have had a much tougher group stage than many had anticipated, but they are facing a side coming off a demoralising defeat, which could work to the advantage of the Tigers of Asia.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

Written by
Joel Lefevre

Previews by email