Sydney –
Japan and Saudi Arabia make sure you pass to 2022 World Cup. Temporary Australia still have to fight through the playoffs.
In the continuation of the 2022 World Cup qualification in the Asian zone, Japan managed to beat Australia 2-0 in Sydney, Thursday (24/3/2022) afternoon WIB. Required to win to keep the chances of qualifying, the Socceroos as the host did not move.
Kaoru Mitoma, who had just entered in the 84th minute, became the hero of Japan’s victory by breaking into Mathew Ryan’s goal twice, each in the 89th and 90+4 minutes.
With the addition of three points, Japan tops Group B with 21 points from 9 matches. It will be Japan’s seventh consecutive World Cup appearance since 1998.
The results achieved by Japan became a blessing for Saudi Arabia. They were originally going to play against China tonight, but now they have been confirmed to qualify before the match with a collection of 19 points from 8 matches.
Because Australia, who is in third place, has only collected 15 points from 9 matches. With one game remaining, it is impossible for Australia to catch up with Japan and Saudi Arabia.
Now Graham Arnold’s squad must fight through the playoffs which will be played in June. They first face third-placed Group A, which is currently being fought for by the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon and Iraq.
The winner of the duel will return to play a week later against fifth place in the final standings of the 2022 World Cup Qualifiers in the CONMEBOL zone, which can still be occupied by Ecuador, Colombia, Chile, Peru and Uruguay.
Thus, four teams have qualified directly from the Asian zone qualifiers. South Korea and Iran had already made sure of their qualification at the start of last year, accompanying Qatar as the host.
Countries that have qualified for the 2022 World Cup (as of 24 March 2022):
1. Qatar
2. Germany
3. Denmark
4. Brazil
5. France
6. Belgium
7. Croatia
8. Spain
9. Serbia
10. English
11. Swiss
12. Holland
13. Argentina
14. Iran
15. South Korea
16. Japan
17. Saudi Arabia
(adp/krs)
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