Match Schedule: February 2012

Matchday Six of the AFC Third Round will be the only matchday taking place in the month of February. In a special occurrence, the matchday has fallen on Leap Day, potentially giving rise to many silly trivia questions like "who is the all-time top scorer in Asian history on Leap Day?" However, the matches on Leap Day are not going to be silly affairs for some of the teams involved, as eight of the twenty teams have yet to settle whether or not they will be advancing to round four of Asian qualifying.

In Group B, two spots are left for progression to the AFC Fourth Round. South Korea merely need a point from their match against Kuwait, and Lebanon need just a point from their match at the United Arab Emirates in order to secure progression. However, a win by Kuwait would see them through to the next phase. If both South Korea and Lebanon lose, South Korea will advance at the expense of Lebanon.

In Group D, only one spot is left for progression to the next phase. If Saudi Arabia secure a win at Australia, they take the spot. However, if Saudi Arabia lose, the winner of the Oman-Thailand match in Oman will secure second place. If Saudi Arabia lose but Oman tie Thailand, Saudi Arabia will advance barring an overwhelming Australia victory. Pandemonium occurs if Saudi Arabia ties and Thailand wins. Both teams would end up equal on points, and the qualification would hinge on whether Thailand had won by three goals or more.

In Group E, Qatar and Bahrain fight for the last spot in the AFC Fourth Round. Qatar will advance with a draw at Iran or if Bahrain fail to win at home against Indonesia. The only way Bahrain qualify is with a massive win combined with a huge loss by Qatar. Bahrain need to overcome a nine-goal deficit in goal differential between themselves and Qatar.

The easy picks are South Korea and Lebanon from Group B and Qatar from Group E. The difficulty arises with the Group D pick. I foresee an Australia win at home coupled with an Oman win at home sending Oman into round four.

Match times are given in Central Time (GMT-6).

29 February 2012 (AFC Third Round Matchday Six)

Jordan at China 2:00 Guangzhou

North Korea at Tajikistan 2:00 Khujand

Saudi Arabia at Australia 3:30 Melbourne

Thailand at Oman 3:30 Muscat

Uzbekistan at Japan 4:30 Toyota

Kuwait at South Korea 6:00 Seoul

Lebanon at United Arab Emirates 6:00 Abu Dhabi

Qatar at Iran 7:30 Tehran

Indonesia at Bahrain 7:30 Manama

Singapore at Iraq 7:45 Doha, Qatar