Korea Republic’s unbeaten run in the final round of qualifying came to an abrupt end in their final match against the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday.

Paulo Bento’s side lost 1-0 at the hands of UAE in their tenth match of the AFC Asian Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 at Al Maktoum Stadium in Dubai. Having accumulated 23 points (with seven wins, two draws and a defeat), the Taegeuk Warriors finished runners up in Group A behind winners Iran (25 pts, W8 D1 L1) that had defeated Lebanon 2-0 earlier in the afternoon.

The Final Draw for Qatar 2022 takes place at 1am (KST) on Saturday. Korea Republic will have a series of friendlies during the A-match windows in the buildup to the tournament proper, which kicks off in November.

Bento made only one change to the side that had beaten Iran last week, replacing goalkeeper Kim Seunggyu with Jo Hyeonwoo. The rest of the squad was as follows: Kim Jinsu, Kim Younggwon, Kim Minjae and Kim Taehwan at the back; Lee Jaesung, Jung Wooyoung and Kwon Changhoon in midfield; and lone striker Hwang Uijo flanked by Son Heungmin and Hwang Heechan.

The first half was evenly poised, with the hosts desperate to claim the third place and reach the playoffs in the Asian Qualifiers. Kim Taehwan was initially adjudged to have pulled down an opponent on the edge of the area, but fortunately for the visitors, a free-kick was given just outside the box after a VAR review.

The visitors struggled against a stubborn Emirati side that sat back deep and waited for their chances against the run of play, capitalising on the mistakes from the opposing side. The Emiratis managed to launch a couple of counterattacks midway through the first half, with Harib Abdalla Suhail’s curling effort only to be denied by Jo Hyeonwoo on 35 minutes.

At the opposite end, the men in red geared up to seize control with ten minutes remaining in the opening half. Hwang Uijo glanced a header off Lee Jaesung’s cross just wide of the left post, although the flag had been already up for an offside.

Five minutes later, Hwang came tantalisingly close to breaking the deadlock. Son Heungmin’s corner was parried away by Khalid Eisa, whose attempted clearance only fell at the feet of Hwang. The Wolverhampton forward found Eisa off his line but saw his audacious lob fall on the upper side of the bar with the keeper beaten.

After a goalless first half, the visitors were dealt an unexpected blow nine minutes into the second half. Kim Minjae failed to clear the ball following a throw-in near the half line as the loose ball fell into the path of Mohamed Abbas Baloushi, whose header put Suhail through on goal for a clinical finish.

Trailing 1-0, Korea Republic fought back fiercely to reduce the deficit. On the hour mark, Hwang Uijo’s header off a Kim Taehwan cross was denied by a fingertip save and the crossbar. Bento then brought Nam Taehee on for Kwon Changhoon to reshuffle his midfield, before replacing fullback Kim Taehwan with forward Cho Youngwook midway through the second half.

But despite making such a risky approach, it proved too little, too late to change the flow of the game. Son Heungmin’s curling freekick was again denied by Eisa deep into added time, as Korea Republic ultimately failed to find the net until the final whistle was blown.

AFC Asian Qualifiers for FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022

Final Round, Group A

UAE 1-0 Korea Republic

Scorer: Harib Abdalla Suhail 54’

KOR: Jo Hyeonwoo; Kim Jinsu, Kim Younggwon, Kim Minjae, Kim Taehwan (Cho Youngwook 77’), Jung Wooyoung, Son Heungmin, Lee Jaesung, Kwon Changhoon (Nam Taehee 61’), Hwang Heechan, Hwang Uijo