China continued their World Cup hunt by a 2–3 defeat to South Korea; and a goalless draw to AFC's then highest ranked Iran at home, leading fans to have an impression that China was heading the right direction for its decent performances against Asian powerhouses South Korea and Iran. It proved wrong however, when China lost 0–1 at home to Syria and 0–2 away to Uzbekistan next month. Gao Hongbo resigned. His team had been winless in the first four matches of the final qualifying stage for the World Cup, including a home loss to Syria which was criticised by a number of fans.