Korea Republic 1-0 Bolivia

Ulsan: Korea Republic defeated Bolivia 1-0 with midfielder Lee Chung-yong coming off the bench to break the scoreless deadlock late in the second half.

Lee's 85th-minute header gave Korea Republic their first win over Bolivia in three meetings. The two previous matches ended in scoreless draws.

This was Korea Republic's first match since losing to Qatar in the quarter-finals of the AFC Asian Cup in January and also their first action at home in 2019.

Thailand will meet the winners of the second semi-final tie between Uzbekistan and Uruguay, while China will play in the third-place play-off on Monday.

China began brightly despite playing without ace striker Wu Lei but Thailand showed resilience as the game saw an aggressive start by both teams.

The United Arab Emirates FA announced his appointment late on Wednesday and the Dutchman, 66, is expected to watch the friendly against Saudi Arabia on Thursday. The UAE will also play Syria on Tuesday.

Van Marwjik succeeds Alberto Zaccheroni, who left following the UAE’s elimination in the semi-finals of the AFC Asian Cup.

Meram, who plays for Major League Soccer’s Columbus Crew SC, fired a trademark curler from inside the penalty box in the 75th minute which took a deflection off a Syrian defender to score the only goal of the match.

The 30-year-old winger’s fourth international goal sent the home fans into a rapturous delight at the Basra International Stadium and the win is a welcome boost for Srečko Katanec's side who bowed out of AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 Round of 16 after losing 1-0 to eventual champions Qatar in January.

Fajr Ibrahim's Syria will be aiming to bounce back when they face Jordan on Saturday, while Iraq take on Vital Borkelmans' men on Tuesday in Basra.

MALAYSIA 0-1 SINGAPORE

Faris Ramli's 82nd minute strike proved to be the difference in Singapore’s hard-fought 1-0 win against Malaysia.

Malaysia were on the offensive from the first blow of the referee's whistle, but the host weren’t able to retain possession as Singapore played well under pressure, and it was the visitors who had the first glimpse on goal in the 12th minute when Yasir Hanapi intercepted a pass.

The Tampines Rovers midfielder then surged down the middle to set up a one-on-one with goalkeeper Khairul Fahmi, but the custodian stood firm to block his close range effort. Hanapi then let loose a half-volley from the resultant corner kick, but shot straight into the arms of Fahmi.

The 27-player squad Bento has called up is missing Ki Sung-yueng and Koo Ja-cheol, two stalwarts who announced their international retirements following the AFC Asian Cup.

While both former captains will be missed, Bento is already looking forward and has included three uncapped youngsters in the squad - 18-year-old Lee Kang-in, Kim Jung-min (19) and Paik Seung-ho (22).

The Portuguese said all three, Lee and Paik - who play for Spanish sides Valencia and Girona respectively - and Kim, who is with Austrian second division outfit FC Liefering, will be given every opportunity to impress.

The 45-year-old former defender will combine the job with being head coach of Chinese Super League (CSL) giants Guangzhou Evergrande.

He takes the post vacated in January by his mentor and compatriot Marcello Lippi, under whom Cannavaro lifted the FIFA World Cup in 2006.

The 70-year-old Lippi will be a consultant under the new coaching set-up named for next week's China Cup, the Chinese Football Association (CFA) said.