The third round of Group E of the Asian Cup is about to kick off, with South Korea taking on Malaysia. It's an interesting group where all three teams have a chance to top the group, but they have to pay a price for it – against Japan in the knockout stages. For South Korea, who are seen as favourites to win the title, it is clear that they do not want to play against Japan. Therefore, this match is very eye-catching, and it is also very likely that the Korean team deliberately controls the score! Sure enough, South Korea ended up in a 3-3 draw with their opponents, while Jordan lost 0-1 to Bahrain. In the end, Bahrain topped the group, while South Korea finished second, avoiding a meeting with Japan. In the Group E standings, Jordan is in first place with four points, followed by South Korea with four points, Bahrain with three points and third, while Malaysia exited early with no points. In the third round of the group stage, South Korea will face Malaysia, and if they win, they will accumulate seven points and have a chance to finish top of the group, while a draw will definitely finish second in the group. In the other game, Bahrain would have topped the group if they had won, while Jordan had slipped to third. If Bahrain and Jordan draw together, Jordan will top the group. Therefore, the whole situation is very simple, and if South Korea draw, they will definitely finish second in the group and naturally avoid the clash with Japan. Although Klinsmann said in his pre-match press conference that he would go all out to win, it was likely to be a cover-up. From the South Korean team's point of view, there is no need to fight Japan, these two teams will hurt each other, and it is really not worth it. South Korea have already qualified and will not have to face Japan if they lose, but they will certainly not want to finish third in the group as that would mean they will not be too weak in the first round of the knockout round. Therefore, South Korea are likely to deliberately play for a draw as only one point is the ideal situation for them. Although some fans believe that if South Korea fails to beat Malaysia, it will be a match-fixing in the Asian Cup, after all, the difference in strength between the two sides is too great. There are also some fans who believe that the goal of the South Korean team is to win the championship, and it makes no difference between playing against Japan in the round of 16 knockout round or against Japan in the final. The game was full of twists and turns, with South Korea taking the lead for a while and then being overtaken by Malaysia, with Lee Gang-in equalising the score. In the 94th minute, Son Heung-min scored again, but in the 104th minute, Malaysia equalized and ended up at 3-3. This game has reversed the situation of qualifying 7 times, which can be described as a wonderful scene of the Asian Cup. South Korea is naturally satisfied, and Japan can also breathe a sigh of relief, as the two East Asian teams have undoubtedly avoided each other's showdowns early. Of course, Jordan were also very willing to lose in this group stage, losing 1-0 against Bahrain to go from first to third, and although they also made it to the top, such a goal conceded turned out to be a real match-fixing.
As one of the favourites to win the Asian Cup, the South Korean team naturally has its own calculations. They understand that not only is there a lot of pressure to play against Japan, but that a fierce confrontation can be detrimental to both sides. In the group stage, South Korea will aim to qualify in the best possible form rather than taking risks just to compete with Japan. So, for them, avoiding the clash with Japan is the most ideal situation.
However, it was not easy to deliberately control the score in the final round. While Klinsmann claims they will go all out to win, it is likely that this is just a façade. South Korea have already qualified and a loss will not affect their avoidance against Japan, but they certainly won't want to finish third in their group as it would mean a relatively strong opponent in the first round of the knockout round. Therefore, they are likely to opt for a draw, which would only score 1 point, which is the best option for them.
Of course, for some fans, the result of South Korea's draw with Malaysia may be labelled as "match-fixing", after all, the two sides have a huge disparity in strength. However, there is a certain amount of subjective assumption in this view, and there is a lack of conclusive evidence. South Korea's goal is to win the championship so they don't deliberately lose in order to get the group stage. For them, being second in the group, while not the most desirable outcome, is much better than being third.
In addition, there are some fans who believe that there is not much difference between the South Korean team and the Japanese team in the round of 16 knockout round or the final, so it is better to play against the Japanese team as soon as possible and have a hearty battle. There is some justification for this view, after all, the final title of the championship needs to be won in the competition against various opponents.
It was a very tortuous match, showing the fighting spirit and non-giving up attitude of the Korean and Malaysian teams. South Korea took the lead at one point, but Malaysia came back to take the lead in the later match. Luckily, Lee equalised. In the final moments of the game, Son Heung-min scored a goal at one point, but Malaysia equalised in stoppage time. In the end, the match ended in a 3-3 draw.
This game** saw 7 reversals in the qualifying situation, making the whole game more tortuous and interesting. South Korea are naturally happy with this, while Japan can also breathe a sigh of relief that the two East Asian teams have managed to avoid confrontation with each other. Jordan, meanwhile, slipped from top of the group to third with a 1-0 defeat. Although they also managed to advance, the result was actually in line with the shape of match-fixing.
To sum up, the third round of Group E of the Asian Cup presented us with a wonderful and interesting situation. As the favorites to win the championship, the South Korean team naturally has its own calculations, hoping to avoid the clash with the Japanese team. They are likely to deliberately kick out a draw in order to maintain points and situation in the group stage. Of course, there have also been controversies and divergences of different views along the way. However, we cannot simply attribute the result to match-fixing, as this would require more conclusive evidence. South Korea's goal is to win the tournament and they will face off against a variety of opponents in the knockout stages. Whether it's meeting the Japanese team or avoiding it early, there are pros and cons for them. The result of this game also fully demonstrated the fighting attitude and spirit of not giving up on the teams. Overall, we can see the twists and turns of the game, and the draw between South Korea and Malaysia also brought about a number of reversals in the group stage qualification. In the end, both South Korea and Japan managed to avoid each other's matchups, while Jordan advanced with a defeat, which also sparked controversy over match-fixing. In this exciting game, no matter what our point of view is, we should be honest and objective about the fighting spirit and hard work of each team.