South Korea earns Asian Cup Group C top spot, China 2nd, Kyrgyzstan 3rd

Abu Dhabi, Jan 16 (IANS) South Korea became the 2019 AFC Asian Cup Group C winner, topping China 2-0 in their last group-stage contest, while Kyrgyzstan snatched the third spot by defeating the Philippines 3-1.

Tottenham's star Son Heung-Min played his first match of this year's Asian Cup and was involved in both of South Korea's goals, reports Efe news.

Son drew a foul in the penalty area and his teammate Hwang Ui-Jo made a successful penalty shot from the 12-yard mark in the 14th minute to start the scoring.

Then in the 50th minute, South Korea got its second goal when defender Kim Min-Jae scored a header off a corner-kick cross by Son.

With the win, South Korea is atop the Group C standings with full marks, that is 9 points out of 3 matches, while China came second with six points.

As first and second place winners, South Korea and China have stamped their tickets for the tournament's upcoming round of 16.

Meanwhile, Kyrgyzstan and the Philippines - each team playing in their first Asian Cup - contended Wednesday for third place in the group.

Kyrgyzstan forward Vitalij Lux kept his side's hopes alive to advance to the round of 16, scoring a hat-trick to lead his team to a 3-1 victory over the Philippines.

The only silver lining for the Filipinos was when their defender Stephan Schrock scored his team's first ever Asian Cup goal in the 80th minute off a free-kick.

The win gives Kyrgyzstan the third spot in Group C with three points and forces the Kyrgyz team to wait and see the results of the remaining group-stage last-round matches, as the best four third-placed teams, out of six groups, are to make the round of 16.