South Korea immediately took control when the match restarted with attempts by Ju Se-jong, Lee Seung-woo and Kim Young-gwon.

Bahrain defended admirably but were caught off guard when Lee Yong sent in a brilliant cross from the right which Jin-su met with a thumping header to seal his team's place in the quarterfinals.

South Korea will now face Qatar, who beat Iraq 1-0 Tuesday, in the last eight at Abu Dhabi's Zayed Sports City Stadium on Friday.

Also on Tuesday, a glorious Bassam Al Rawi free-kick proved the difference as Qatar beat a determined Iraq 1-0 to advance.

Al Rawi struck in the second half of a fascinating encounter, which swang one way and then the other before being settled by the number 15's superb effort at an atmospheric Al Nahyan Stadium in Abu Dhabi.

Despite Iraq's industrious start to the game, it was Qatar who spurned the first genuine opportunity when 2018 AFC Player of the Year Abdelkarim Hassan rattled the bar with a shot from close range following Abdelaziz Hatim's cross in the fourth minute.

As Qatar continued to press in the opening stages, a well-placed Hatim came close to connecting with Hasan's whipped delivery, only for goalkeeper Saad Al Sheeb to then dive bravely at the feet of an onrushing Mohanad Ali to repel Iraq's opening attack of the tie.

Iraq suffered a blow shortly after the half-hour mark as influential midfielder Humam Tareq left the pitch on a stretcher, although an Ahmed Ibrahim header which forced Al Sheeb into a smart save subsequently demonstrated the threat still posed by Srecko Katanec's charges.

However, the 2000 and 2011 quarterfinalists Qatar were to end an absorbing first half in the ascendancy as Hasan's deflected cross brushed an upright and Al Rawi headed Akram Afif's corner agonizingly wide of the target.

The second period began just as brightly and, after Iraq custodian Jalal Hassan had denied Akram Afif, Qatar went ahead on 62 minutes, Al Rawi curling home a delightful free-kick that Hassan could do little about.

Moments later, Hassan spread himself well to deny his rampaging Qatari namesake, before producing another fine stop to keep out a fierce Hatim drive from distance.

Iraq, though, refused to buckle, as Ali Adnan flashed a free-kick inches past the post and then Ahmed Ibrahim's 80th minute header missed by a similarly fine margin.

Qatar, with captain Hasan Al Haydos excelling throughout, valiantly held firm despite late Iraqi pressure to move ever closer to realizing their title aspirations.

In the quarterfinals, Vietnam face Japan, China play Iran, South Korea meet Qatar and United Arab Emirates host Australia.