Gusty performance

Playing against South Korea, the world's 23rd-ranked team, with its qualifying hopes hanging by a thread, Team China opened the match with a tight defensive effort, hoping to grind out a draw with the Taegeuk Warriors and claim the point that would ensure they finished the qualifying phase ahead of Thailand.

After keeping South Korea's lethal combo of Son Heung-min and Lee Kang-in at bay in the first half, China's resilient defense cracked on 61 minutes, when Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Lee scored the only goal of the game to ensure that South Korea enter the final qualifying stage with an unbeaten record of five wins out of six games.

Given the gap between the two teams, and China's all-time losing record against South Korea, a 1-0 loss on the road would have been an acceptable outcome for the Dragons in any other scenario.

However, Chinese players left the pitch at the final whistle anxiously awaiting results elsewhere. Thailand led Singapore by a single goal at the turnaround in Bangkok — on course to edge China out by scoring two more goals in the remaining 45 minutes.

Thailand did indeed find the net twice in the second half, but a 57th-minute, 20-yard rocket from the boot of Singapore forward Fandi Ahmad, and a flurry of spectacular saves from veteran goalkeeper Hassan Sunny in the dying minutes, came to Team China's rescue.

Fandi's long-range strike proved costly for the War Elephants, who laid siege to the Singapore goal, but could not find a vital fourth, much to the disappointment of the home fans in the packed Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok.

"This was what we deserved, and what we'd expected to experience after failing to beat Thailand at home," Team China goalkeeper Wang Dalei said of the mental anguish of waiting for the result of the other match.

"Defensively, we started well. Our double-team strategy on Son worked pretty well, containing him and preventing him from causing any serious damage," he said.

"Our young players, in particular, did a good job today. Hopefully, they can continue to make a further contribution to the national team going forward."

In its home match on June 6, Team China squandered a second-half spotkick, which was blasted into the stands by Brazilian-born forward Fei Nanduo, forcing the host to settle for a 1-1 draw against Thailand that failed to secure its progression with a match to spare.