A B C D
E F G H
Japan beats South Korea 2-0
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- Japan improved its slim chance to qualify for the 1998 World Cup by beating South Korea, its co-host for the 2002 tournament, 2-0 Saturday on goals by Hiroshi Nanami and Brazilian-born Wagner Lopes.South Korea (5-1-1) already has clinched first place in Group B of Asian qualifying and a berth in the 32-nation tournament next summer. Japan (2-1-4) is second with 10 points, two ahead of the United Arab Emirates (2-2-2), which plays at home Sunday against Uzbekistan.
The two group winners qualify for the World Cup, and the two second-place teams advance to a one-game playoff. The playoff winner qualifies, and the loser plays a home-and-home series against Australia for the final spot in the tournament.
Japan has its final Group B game next Saturday at home against Kazakhstan, while the UAE finishes up Friday night at home againstSouth Korea.
After battling for more than three years for the right to be host for the World Cup in 2002, Japan and South Korea were designated co-hosts by FIFA in mid-1996. While South Korea has qualified four consecutive World Cups and five overall, Japan is trying to advance to the tournament for the first time.
With the win, Japan is 8-33-16 against South Korea since 1954. When the teams met in Tokyo on Sept. 28, Japan wasted a 1-0 lead in the final five minutes, losing 2-1.
Nanami put Japan ahead in the second minute. Lopes, who obtained Japanese citizenship in September, scored in the 37th, stunning the 70,000 fans in Olympic Stadium.
NEXT ROUNDS: Round of 16 || Quarter-finals || Semi-finals
GROUP A: Brazil, Morocco, Norway, Scotland
GROUP B: Austria, Cameroon, Chile, Italy
GROUP C: Denmark, France, Saudi Arabia, South Africa
GROUP D: Bulgaria, Nigeria, Paraguay, Spain
GROUP E: Belgium, Holland, Mexico, South Korea
GROUP F: Germany, Iran, United States, Yugoslavia
GROUP G: Colombia, England, Romania, Tunisia
GROUP H: Argentina, Croatia, Jamaica, Japan