China narrowly advanced into the third round of the Asian Qualifiers and 2026 FIFA World Cup (WC) Qualifiers despite losing to South Korea 1-0 away in Group-C on Tuesday night. After being held to a 1-1 draw by Thailand at home last week, China had to take at least one point in the final game of the second round against South Korea to survive, otherwise their fortunes would be decided by the result of the game between Thailand and Singapore.
China managed to keep a clean sheet in the first half at the Seoul World Cup Stadium, but Lee Kang-in broke the deadlock for South Korea in the 61st minute as the PSG midfielder collected a loose ball inside the box and fired into the bottom right corner.