South Korea were held to a disappointing 0-0 draw by Iraq in Wednesday s friendly match at Emirates Club Stadium in UAE.
Uli Stielike s side could not find a way past goalkeeper Mohammed Gassid despite boasting a strong side that included Tottenham star Son Heung-min and Augsburg striker Ji Dong-won.
Iraq, who lost 2-0 to South Korea when the teams last met in the semi-final of the Asian Cup in 2015, were good value for the draw and mustered more efforts on target than their more illustrious opponents.
Chances were scarce in a tepid 90 minutes as Basim Qasim set his side out to frustrate the Koreans, who started with Son, Ji and Lee Chung-yong in a dangerous attacking trident.
Son carved out one of the better openings in the first half, driving towards the byline down the left before sending a low cross towards Ji, who could not connect properly from six yards out under pressure from a tight Iraq defence.
Hwang Hee-Chan wasted a good opportunity to set up fellow substitute Lee Keun-ho after the break as he dragged a shot wide of the right-hand post rather than squaring the ball, Kim Seung-gyu had to be alert soon afterwards to deny Ahmed Yasin s free-kick from 25 yards out.
Stielike s men, who were cheered on by South Korean special forces in Ras al-Khaimah, looked the more exciting going forward but managed little to threaten Iraq s goal in the final half-hour as both sides rang the changes.
The result means they have now scored only once in their last three matches as they prepare for next week s World Cup qualifying match against Qatar.
Failure to win that meeting would allow Uzbekistan to climb above them and into second place in Group A of the Asian qualifying section if they beat group leaders Iran.
