November 2011 Preview: Asia-Group 3

Standings



World Ranking/Change from Previous Rank

Japan-17th (Down 2), 1st Asia (Even)
North Korea-124th (Down 3), 17th Asia (Even)
Tajikistan-130th (Down 6), 18th Asia (Even)
Uzbekistan-73rd (Up 6), 6th Asia (Even)

Schedule

September 2, 2011

• North Korea 0-1 Japan
• Uzbekistan 1-0 Tajikistan

September 6, 2011

• Tajikistan 0-1 North Korea
• Japan 1-1 Uzbekistan

October 11, 2011

• Tajikistan 0-8 Japan
• Uzbekistan 1-0 North Korea

November 11, 2011

• North Korea at Uzbekistan
• Japan at Tajikistan

November 15, 2011

• Tajikistan at Uzbekistan
• Japan at North Korea

February 29, 2012

• Uzbekistan at Japan
• North Korea at Tajikistan

November Games:

Game 7
Japan at Tajikistan
November 11, 2011
Time: 4:00 am EST
Location: Central Stadium, Dushanbe, Tajikistan

Game 8
North Korea at Uzbekistan
November 11, 2011
Time: 8:00 am EST
Location: Pakhtakor Markaziy Stadium, Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Game 9
Japan at North Korea
November 15, 2011
Time: 2:00 am EST
Location: Kim Il-Sung Stadium, Pyongyang, North Korea

Game 10
Tajikistan at Uzbekistan
November 15, 2011
Time: 8:00 am EST
Location: Pakhtakor Markaziy Stadium, Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Both Japan and Uzbekistan have an opportunity to clinch advancement on the 11th and have favourable matchups to do so. Japan visits Tajikistan fresh off an 8-0 drubbing of the Central Asian nation in October and Uzbekistan gets North Korea at home in a return leg of their previous matchup. Japan is likely looking at a win but the North Korea-Uzbekistan game will be competitive. North Korea needs at least a point, preferably a win in order to stay alive.

On the 15th, Uzbekistan hosts their neighbours and like Japan will be favoured to grab 3 points. North Korea will host Japan in what will again be a must-win game should they still be alive in the group. A loss would leave them at 6 points maximum with Japan and presumably Uzbekistan both at 10, eliminating the Koreans.

Post-November Standing Predictions:

a-Japan: 13 pts
a-Uzbekistan: 13 pts
x-North Korea: 3 pts
x-Tajikistan: 0 pts

Japan and Uzbekistan keep getting better while North Korea is just spinning their wheels. One way or another, Japan and Uzbekistan should both be in to Round 4 by the middle of the month.