AFP
Singapore
Iraq captain Younis Mahmoud rescued a point for Iraq with a last-ditch penalty as the former Asian champions drew 1-1 with Vietnam in Hanoi on Thursday in the Asian Qualifiers for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
A first-half strike by Le Cong Vinh gave the hosts the lead at My Dinh Stadium but Mahmoud converted a spot kick deep into stoppage time, which kept his side unbeaten in Group F and boosted their hopes of advancing to the third round of the Asian Qualifiers. Palestine also needed a late equaliser as they drew 1-1 with Timor Leste in Group A, while North Korea dropped their first points in Group H when they were held to a goalless draw by the Philippines in Pyongyang.
North Korea's perfect start in Group H came to an end when they were surprisingly held 0-0 at home by the Philippines. In other early matches on Thursday, Singapore downed Afghanistan 1-0 in Group E with a 72nd minute header by Khairul Amri, while goals by Hassan Maatouk and Abbas Atwi gave Lebanon a 2-0 win over Myanmar in a Group G game in Bangkok. Maldives picked up their first points in Group C after withstanding a late fightback to win 4-3 at Bhutan.
