Iran and Korea Republic have played each other four times in each edition since 1996 and the Taeguk Warriors have split the wins with Team Melli. More remarkably, all their meetings have been in the quarter-finals, an indicator to the prowess of both teams.
Their first quarter-final match-up was in 1996 when Team Melli ran riot and demolished their rivals 6-2.
Four years later in Lebanon, both sides again reached the last eight and were drawn to play against each other. Just when one though the Taeguk Warriors would extract revenge for their humiliation in the previous edition, the Iranians stepped up and shaded it 2-1.
Again in 2004, fate brought the two rivals together in the quarter-finals. This time luck was again with Iran and they kept Korea out of the semifinals with a thrilling 4-3 victory.
Their quarter-final tussle in 2007 was perhaps one of the most thrilling matches in the history of the tournament. The match remained goalless after 120 minutes of high-pressure action and went to penalties. The Taeguk Warriors’ goalkeeper Lee ‘Spiderman’ Woon-jae proved to be the difference and inspired the team to a heart-stopping 4-2 win.