Flying start for DPR Korea

Sri Lanka had conceded the lead in unfortunate circumstances when Maduskha Peiris turned a corner kick into his own goal in the fourth minute.

The goal stunned Sri Lanka who, despite a glut of injuries, had harboured hopes of causing an upset.

And even before the 2006 finalists could recover, Pak curled a free kick into the net from 20 yards out.

He added another halfway through the first half as the Koreans marched off into the break with the result all but decided.

Jo Tong-sop's DPR Korea are favourites to progress to the semi-finals from the group and they could do it with ease should they play as well as they did against the Sri Lankans.

They looked at ease although conditions were less than favourable thanks to a couple of short, sharp showers that drenched players and left the ground soft just before kick-off.

The Koreans immediately threatened with Choe Myong-ho, Ho Jong-min and Pak combining well.

They brought intense pressure on the Sri Lankan defence, which looked shaky from the offset.

Then Yun Yong-il sent in a corner that skimmed the head of a defender at the near post before landing at Peiris' boot. With a clearance to make, the defender only succeeded in booting the ball into his own goal.

Pak then increased the advantage when he stepped up to take a free kick from just out side the area and sent the ball into the right-hand corner of the net.

The North Koreans had looked decidedly dangerous on set pieces throughout, but Pak's third goal came after a scramble at the edge of the area. He latched on to the loose ball and fired home.

The chaos in Sri Lanka's defence was epitomized when goalkeeper Viraj Asanka injured his full back Janaka Silva while attempting to clear a corner.

Sri Lanka's lone striker Kasun Jayasuriya hardly got a touch although the speedy striker did have a little more possession in the second half.

However, the Koreans continued to dominate play after the break and only disappointing finishing saved Sri Lanka from an even more embarrassing margin of defeat.