Korea held by Palestine as winning streak ends in World Cup qualifiers

Son Heung-min of Korea celebrates after scoring a goal against Palestine during the teams' Group B match in the third round of the Asian World Cup qualification at Amman International Stadium in Amman, Nov. 19. Yonhap Korea were held to a 1-1 draw by Palestine on Tuesday as their winning streak in the Asian World Cup qualifiers came to an end at four.

Captain Son Heung-min netted the equalizer for 22nd-ranked Korea in the 16th minute, four minutes after Palestine, world No. 100, had scored first at Amman International Stadium in Amman in the teams' Group B match in the third round of the Asian qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. It was Son's 51st international goal, giving him sole possession of second place on Korea's all-time list.



But Korea failed to find the back of the net again despite dominating ball possession. Palestine were the home team but the match took place in the Jordanian capital as the neutral venue due to the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict. Korea lead Group B with 14 points from four wins and two draws, six points ahead of Iraq and Jordan before the conclusion of their matches on Tuesday.

Korea had a goalless draw against Palestine on Sept. 5 in Seoul to open the third round. This was Korea's last World Cup qualifying match for 2024, and the campaign will resume in March with back-to-back home matches against Oman and Jordan.

The third round will conclude in June with an away match against Iraq and a home contest against Kuwait. There are three groups of six in this phase, and the top two teams from each group will punch their tickets to the 2026 World Cup. Teams finishing in third and fourth will go on to play the fourth round.

Korea have played at every World Cup since 1986. Kim Min-jae of Korea, left, and Tamer Seyam of Palestine battle for the ball during the teams' Group B match in the third round of the Asian World Cup qualification at Amman International Stadium in Amman, Nov. 19.

Yonhap Korea head coach Hong Myung-bo doled out the exact same starting lineup that beat Kuwait 3-1 last Thursday. Lee Myung-jae and Seol Young-woo got their fifth consecutive start together as left and right fullbacks, while Kim Min-jae and Cho Yu-min stayed as center back partners for the fourth start in a row. Hwang In-beom, who set up two goals last week, and Park Yong-woo once again started as defensive midfielders.

Son Heung-min and Lee Kang-in started on the left and right wings, flanking playmaker Lee Jae-sung. Oh Se-hun got his third straight start as the striker, after scoring in each of the two previous matches. Korea conceded the opening goal in the 12th minute after a careless mistake by the usually reliable Kim Min-jae.

Kim sent a back pass to goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo but did not get much behind the ball. Zeid Qunbar sprinted into the box and intercepted the ball just before it got to Jo, and rolled it through the goalkeeper's wickets to give Palestine a 1-0 lead. That lead lasted just four minutes as Son scored his milestone goal off some nifty triangle passing.

First, it was Lee Myung-jae passing the ball to Lee Jae-sung, who was standing just outside the box. The midfielder then made a one-touch pass into space for Son, who sneaked in behind defenders and fired a right-footed shot from a tough angle into the bottom right corner. Son had a couple more chances, shooting a free kick that tested Rami Hamada in net in the 30th minute and then firing a left-footed shot from outside the box right at the Palestine goalkeeper.

At the other end, Jo made a big save on Oday Dabbagh's volley following a corner during stoppage time to keep the match tied. Zeid Qunbar of Palestine, right, scores past Korean goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo during the teams' Group B match in the third round of the Asian World Cup qualification at Amman International Stadium in Amman, Nov. 19.

Yonhap Earlier in the added time, Park Yong-woo's header goal for Korea was disallowed after the midfielder himself was called for a foul in the area. Korea seized control early in the second half. Three minutes after the restart, Son put on his patented move on the left side of the box for a right-footed shot turned aside by Hamada.

Four minutes later, Lee Kang-in sent a cross into the box for Oh Se-hun, who dropped the ball with his head for Hwang In-beom's right-footed attempt that sailed over the target. In the 57th minute, Lee's shot from the middle of the box, following a corner taken by Son, ricocheted off a Palestinian player's body and out of play. Palestine pushed back in the 70th minute with Oday Dabbagh's shot from close range that missed high.

In the 72nd minute, forward Oh Hyeon-gyu replaced winger Lee Kang-in to give Korea two strikers up front, with Joo Min-kyu having been subbed in for Oh Se-hun eight minutes earlier. Winger Bae Jun-ho, with a goal and two assists over his past three matches, entered for Lee Jae-sung. Those changes did not produce the desired result, though, as Korean players struggled to find seams for passes or shots against the dogged Palestine defense in late minutes.

Son had what would have been his second goal of the match wiped out on an offside, after taking a long pass from Hwang In-beom and poking the ball past Hamada from close range. (Yonhap).