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SAO PAULO, Brazil -- Reduced to 10 men for over half the match, Belgium still beat South Korea 1-0 on Thursday to finish atop of Group H and eliminate the last Asian team from the World Cup. With a late goal yet again, Belgium made the difference in the 78th minute when defender Jan Vertonghen followed up a shot from teenage striker Divock Origi and tapped in the rebound past goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu. "We knew all games were going to be tough," said Belgium coach Marc Wilmots. "But even with 10 men, we still pushed forward. These guys are really hungry." After three narrow victories and precious little beautiful play, Belgium will now play the United States in Salvador on Tuesday. "Mission accomplished," said Wimots. And along with Iran, Japan and Australia, South Korea departed as the last team from the Asian federation, all in the first round. Algeria finished second in the group after a 1-1 draw with Russia -- a result that meant South Korea needed a four-goal win to advance. They never came close. "All of our players did their utmost. They gave it their all but I think that it was my shortcoming, my failing as a coach that caused this result," said coach Hong Myung-Bo. The former captain of the 2002 team which reached the semifinals did not offer his resignation, though. South Korea did not go without a strong fight, landing the ball on Belgiums crossbar on the hour-mark and testing standout goalie Thibaut Courtois with several shots afterward. Yet even with a man up, the Koreans could never pressure Belgium enough to find an opening and paid the price. For scorer Vertonghen it was a bit of redemption after he caused the penalty against Algeria in the opener which forced Belgium into late histrionics to come back and claw out a 2-1 victory. "I really felt bad after that but now only joy is left," he said. Belgium promised to play with flair in this tournament but is proving that its still a master at grinding out results. "It gives us so much confidence to get those nine points with only 10 men and prepare for the Americans in that mood," Vertonghen said. Having a goalie like Courtois does make it easier, especially as its defence was missing injured starters Vincent Kompany and Thomas Vermaelen. But the Belgians also proved they sorely lacked the creative skills of Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard, who were on the bench from the start. On the hour mark, South Korea came closest to scoring when Son Heung-min saw a cross float right onto the crossbar beyond the reach of Courtois. Belgium fielded four World Cup newcomers, but was reduced to three in the 45th minute when Steven Defour planted his studs, leg outstretched, into the shin of Kim Shin-wook. Australian referee Benjamin Williams didnt hesitate to pull out the red card. Earlier, the South Koreans almost scored around the half-hour mark. First, a long-distance drive from Ki Sung-yeung forced Courtois into a great diving save and, one minute later, Defour kicked a ball off the line in another goalmouth scramble. Mertens could have lifted the pressure off Belgium in the 25th minute he was left wide open eight meters out. He skied the ball over, immediately opening his mouth in disbelief at having missed such a chance. In the second half, South Korea brought on a second full striker in Lee Keun-ho for even more pressure. The Asians created a flurry of chances early in the second half, but either Courtois showed his class or the South Koreans lacked any precision. ------ Lineups: South Korea: Kim Seung-gyu; Lee Yong, Kim Young-gwon, Hong Jeong-ho, Yun Suk-young; Lee Chung-yong, Han Kook-young (Lee Keun-ho, 46th), Ki Sung-yueng, Son Heung-min (Ji Dong-won, 73rd); Koo Ja-cheol, Kim Shin-wook (Kim Bo-kyung, 66th). Belgium: Thibaut Courtois; Anthony Vanden Borre, Daniel Van Buyten, Nicolas Lombaerts, Jan Vertonghen; Steven Defour, Moussa Dembele, Dries Mertens (Divock Origi, 60th), Marouane Fellaini, Adnan Januzaj (Nacer Chadli, 60th); Kevin Mirallas (Eden Hazard, 88th). Adidas Ultra Boost Clearance Sale . With one week left in the regular season, Cornish - voted The Toughest Player To Bring Down - is a leading candidate for the CFLs Most Outstanding Player award. He has rushed for 1,799 yards and could break Willie Burdens club record for rushing yards in a single season with a 98-yard performance against the B. Adidas Ultra Boost Clearance . -- Isaiah Pead took a stutter step forward, then raced to the left sideline and travelled 60 yards up the field before finally getting tripped up by a leg tackle. http://www.cheapultraboost.net/ . No, really, his head. Late in the game, the St. Louis goalie craned his neck into the air to block a shot, taking a puck square in the mask. Adidas Ultra Boost Sale . Coaches are now allowed to challenge both called and potential defensive pass interference fouls under certain conditions. Adidas Ultra Boost Cheap Sale . -- The Oakland Athletics and free agent right-hander Bartolo Colon have agreed to terms on a US$2 million, one-year contract, bolstering their depleted starting rotation.WASHINGTON -- After striking out 13 times in an 11-1 loss to Stephen Strasburg and the Washington Nationals on Friday night, the San Diego Padres had reason to look forward to facing a much less-imposing pitcher on Saturday. But San Diego had even more trouble against right-hander Tanner Roark, who pitched a three-hitter for the first complete game of his career as the Nationals shut out the Padres 4-0. The 27-year-old set down the first 16 batters before San Diego catcher Rene Rivera, an .074 batter entering the game, hit a solid single to centre field with one out in the sixth inning. San Diego managed to get just two more singles in the game and didnt get a runner past second base. "He had a good sinker, changeup, was keeping the ball down especially," said San Diego first baseman Yonder Alonzo, who went 0-for-3. San Diego entered Saturdays game tied for the second-worst batting average in the National League (.226) and saw it drop further. In a span of 19 hours and 18 innings, the Padres got 13 hits, all singles, and fanned 21 times. When Saturdays game was over, only two of the nine players San Diego started had batting averages better than .200 -- shortstop Everth Cabrera (.300) and outfielder Chris Denorfia (.324). "We do hope that the offence gets better, that guys get to their career averages -- at some point," manager Bud Black said. San Diego struggled in many facets on Saturday. The Padres made three infield errors. Second baseman Jedd Gyorko would have had two had it not been for a generous ruling. Jayson Werths hopper up the middle might have been an inning-ending double-play. But after it was initially ruled an error, it was changed to a single. Either way, the play allowed Washington to grab a 3-0 lead in the first inning, all the runs the Nationals needed against Padres ace Andrew Cashner (2-3). "What weve got to stay away from is the hitters letting their offence go into their defence," Black said. "When you dont score and you make a couple errors, they become magnified because its so important when youre not scoring.dddddddddddd" Mixing three other pitches with his modest 92 mph fastball, Roark (2-0) walked one and struck out eight, including Gyorko to end the game on his 105th pitch. "I was feeling confident out there on the mound, felling strong," Roark said. "Getting ahead of the hitters is the biggest thing." Roark has been more than a one-hit wonder for the Nationals. Since taking his spot in the rotation, he has produced eight quality starts in 10 attempts with a 5-1 record. Roark extended his run of consecutive scoreless innings to 18. In 35 innings at Nationals Park he has given up one earned run. On Saturday, he extended the frustrations of the Padres. "We played terrible today, honestly," Alonzo said. "We didnt defend, didnt hit. Cash kept us in the game, He always does. Hes our ace. He will always keep us in the game. Today we werent behind him. We didnt play good defence. It was somewhat of an embarrassment." Washington increased its advantage to 4-0 in the sixth when Kevin Frandsen opened with a single, moved to second base on a sacrifice bunt by Roark, and scored on a single to left by Denard Span. Frandsen was starting in left field for Bryce Harper, who was out of the lineup with a jammed thumb. Notes: X-rays on the jammed thumb of Harper were negative, according to manager Matt Williams, who said that Harper was undergoing an MRI after the game. Williams said that Harper was available to pinch-hit. ... The Nationals had their second successful replay challenge in three games as Werth was ruled safe at second base, taking two bases on a booted ground ball. ... Padres outfielder Seth Smith was out of the lineup for the second straight day and will remain day-to-day after suffering a strained groin Thursday night against the Nationals. He was scheduled to take cuts in the batting cage on Saturday and for light jogging on Sunday. ... Washington right-hander Taylor Jordan (0-3, 6.23 ERA) will face San Diego right-hander Ian Kennedy (1-3, 3.60) on Sunday. ' ' '