MANILA, Philippines - North Korea and Uzbekistan hacked out separate victories Tuesday night to make it a two-way race for Group H honors in the Fifa World Cup Qualifiers and in the process, formally ousted idle Philippines from contention.
The North Koreans nipped Bahrain at the Kim Il Sung Stadium in Pyongyang, 2-0, to maintain their hold of the lead with 16 points. Pak Kwang Ryong and Jong Il-Gwan scored in stoppage time in each half to led the Chollima to their fifth win against one draw and one loss.
For their part, the Uzbeks outclassed Yemen, 3-1, to stay within striking distance of North Korea with 15 points. Azizbek Haydarov (7’), Server Djeparov (31’), and Stanislav Andreev (50’) struck as Uzbekistan improved to 5-0-1.
The twin results effectively gave the third running Philippine Azkals the boot with still two games left in their group schedule. The Azkals, who conceded a shock 0-2 setback to Yemen last week, are stuck with seven points (2-1-3) and could no longer catch up with the Top 2 even if they beat Uzbekistan and North Korea in March.