Lee’s double was scored either side of a strike by Han Seung-gyu as Kim Bong-gil’s side raced into a three-goal lead before a remarkable fightback by the Olyroos almost saw the Koreans pegged back in a thrilling finale.

But, with Lee watching from the sidelines having been replaced soon after scoring his side's third, the Koreans clung on to claim all three points to set up a last eight meeting with Malaysia on Saturday as the Australians crashed out of the competition.

“I came off the pitch before we conceded the two goals, but I was telling the players to focus more on the game,” said Lee, who was replaced in the 68th minute by Park In-hyeok. “In the end we were able to hang on for the victory so I'm very happy about that.

“We thought that the match would be very difficult and, as expected, that's exactly how it was.

“In the previous two matches – against Vietnam and Syria - the opposition focused on defending so it was not easy for us to attack, but this match was totally different. It was better for us as we could play our attacking game.”

Lee’s goals came either side of a fine effort from Han Seung-gyi that were just enough to see off a determined fightback by the Olyroos and set up a last eight meeting with Malaysia on Saturday.

Two goals in six minutes late in the second half from Nicholas Cowburn and Trent Buhagiar gave Ante Milicic’s team hope of salvaging the win needed to advance to the quarter-finals, but the defeat means Australia exit the competition.

The Koreans inflicted the fatal wounds to Australia’s hopes in a spell-binding opening 45 minutes that ended with Kim’s side holding a two-goal advantage before effectively finishing off the job with a quarter of the game remaining with their third.

The 2016 runners-up were the sharper of the two teams in the first half, with Yoon Seung-won warming Paul Izzo’s hands just 11 minutes into the game with an attempt from long range before Lee put his side in front seven minutes later.

Han Seung-gyu pulled down a high ball inside the Australian penalty before turning Izzo, only for his attempt at goal to be cleared off the line by Thomas Deng. But Lee slotted home the loose ball.

 

The result, coupled with table-topping Korea Republic’s win over Australia, saw Vietnam seal second place in Group D and set up a last eight tie against Group C winners Iraq at the Changshu Sports Center on Saturday.

Both sides made a cautious start to the match, before Syria spurned two chances in the 12th minute, as first Moumen Naji was denied by excellent Vietnam defending and then, from the resulting corner, Mohamad Arnaout sent a header narrowly wide of the post.

Vietnam replied with a swift attack of their own, Nguyen Quang Hai finding Nguyen Cong Phuong inside the area who flashed a shot past the left-hand upright with 15 minutes on the clock.

Syria began to enjoy more of the ball after that, although, despite some neat approach play and the obvious threat being posed by lofty striker Mohamad Rafat, they failed to breach Vietnam’s resolute defence as a first half of few genuine chances came to a close.

 

The fixtures, dates and venues are as follows (kick-off times are local):

Qatar v Palestine: Changzhou Olympic Sports Center, January 19 at 19.30

Japan v Uzbekistan: Jiangyin Sports Center, January 19 at 16.00

Iraq v Vietnam: Changshu Sports Center, January 20 at 19.30

Korea Republic v Malaysia: Kunshan Sports Center, January 20 at 16.00

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How They Qualified

Qatar: Finished top of Group A with three wins from their three games.
Palestine: Tournament debutants who were second in Group B.
Japan: Were top of Group B with a perfect record thanks to their three victories.
Uzbekistan: Group A’s second-placed team who beat China 1-0 in the group stage.
Iraq: Group C winners with two wins and a draw to their name.
Vietnam: Came second in Group D thanks to a win and a draw.
Korea Republic: Topped Group D with seven points.
Malaysia: The competition’s other debutants. Finished second in Group C.