The power of Japan and Iran
away, Japan beat China 3-1, with striker Koki Ogawa scoring twice. Notably, the visitors' 3 goals were all headers. This victory helped Japan firmly hold the top spot in Group C with 16 points, 9 points ahead of the second-placed team, Australia.
This result helped Japan secure a ticket to the 4th qualifying round, although there are still 4 more matches in the 3rd qualifying round. More importantly, it helped coach Moriyasu's team take another step forward on their journey to qualify for the 8th consecutive World Cup.
He admitted that Japan can qualify for the World Cup in the match in March 2025, when the team meets Bahrain and Saudi Arabia at home. In the first leg, Japan defeated these two opponents with scores of 5-0 and 2-0 away.
In Group A, Iran and Uzbekistan have also secured tickets to the 4th qualifying round. They are No. 1 and No. 2 in the group with 16 and 13 points respectively. However, their goal is to get tickets to the 3rd qualifying round soon. In March 2025, Iran will have 2 home matches, respectively against the UAE and Uzbekistan. This will be an opportunity for them to get tickets to the US, Mexico and Canada soon.
In Group B, the Korean team has also secured a ticket to the 4th qualifying round, when leading the group with 14 points/5 matches. Son Heung-min and his teammates were held to a 1-1 draw by Palestine, but that only somewhat reduced their weakness. The Korean team still has many opportunities to soon win 1 of the group's 2 tickets to the 2026 World Cup. The remaining beauty is the competition of Iraq, Jordan, Oman.
bright chance to participate in the World Cup for Indonesia
After the 6th round, no team has been officially eliminated. However, in Group A, the DPRK (2 points) and Kyrgyzstan (3 points) are clearly out of breath compared to other teams. They do not have many opportunities to compete for a ticket to the World Cup, and it is very difficult to even get a ticket to the 4th round.
Similarly in Group B, Palestine (3 points) and Kuwait (4 points) are also at a disadvantage to get a ticket to the next round. If there are no unexpected developments, the South Korean and Iraq teams will have tickets to the World Cup in this group; while the Oman and Jordan teams will enter the 4th round.
In Group C, the Indonesian team has a very bright chance to qualify for the World Cup. They have 6 points, ranking 3rd in the group, only 1 point behind the second-placed team Australia. Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and China also have 6 points.
With a very small gap between teams, the competition for a ticket to the next round after Japan will be very attractive. Indonesia will open up a great opportunity if they defeat Bahrain and China at home. This is within the reach of Shin Tae-yong and his team, because they are still improving every day.
