China could await Vietnam in third round of World Cup qualifiers
VOV.VN - After beating the United Arab Emirates in the final group game in the second qualifying round in the Asian region for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Vietnam could play China ahead in the final qualifying round.
Along with Vietnam and China, 10 other Asian teams have also made it into the third round, including Syria, Australia, Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Japan, the UAE, the Republic of Korea (RoK), and Lebanon.
According to seeding for the third round, Japan and Iran are in Pot 1 while the RoK and Australia have been placed into Pot 2.
Pot 3 is made up of Saudi Arabia and Iraq, while China and the UAE have been placed into Pot 4. Elsewhere, Pot 5 includes Syria and Oman, with Vietnam being joined by Lebanon in Pot 6.
With this selection, Vietnam could play against either the UAE or China in the third round. In addition, the Vietnamese national team may also be placed in the same group as the RoK, Japan, Iraq, or Syria.
After deducting six points from wins recorded against Indonesia, who finished fifth in Group G, Vietnam have 11 points. The national team therefore bested the other second-placed teams in the other groups, including Jordan, Tajikistan, and Lebanon.
The 12 teams which have advanced from the second round will be divided into two groups of six teams and will play home-and-away round-robin matches. The top two teams from each group will ultimately qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, with the two third-placed teams progressing to the playoffs.
The draw for the third qualifying round in the Asian region for the 2022 FIFA World Cup is scheduled to take place at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on June 24.
