South Korea avenged a 1-0 home defeat to Japan in April by the same scoreline at a rain-swept National Stadium on Saturday.
Ironically it was Japan-based, second-half substitute Ahn Jung Hwan who banged in the deserved winner in the 86th minute after a mistake by Yutaka Akita.
The deadlock was broken when Akita misplaced a pass upfield straight to South Korea which took advantage of the space vacated by him, sending the ball to midfielder Lee Eul Yong down the left wing. Lee sent in a low cross that evaded the inrushing Japanese defense, allowing Ahn to stab the ball home from close range.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.