Russia beats South Korea 2-1 in friendly

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) Dmitry Tarasov scored a second-half winner as Russia rallied to beat South Korea 2-1 in a friendly on Tuesday.

Kim Shin-wook gave South Korea the lead from a goalmouth scramble following a corner in the sixth minute. Russia equalized six minutes later, when Fedor Smolov met Roman Shirokov's cross from the right.

Tarasov headed in Alexander Samedov's corner kick in the 59th.

Both sides have qualified for next year's World Cup in Brazil and Russia coach Fabio Capello used the match to continue trying out younger players choosing only two of his regular starters for the game.

South Korea dominated the early possession, testing Zenit St. Petersburg goalkeeper Yuri Lodygin on his international debut. But Russia was more consistent after the break, putting pressure on its opponents.

"I'm very satisfied. I wanted to look at the players at work at this high level," Capello said. "All the debutants looked great, playing against opponents who press actively in every part of the pitch."

South Korea coach Choi Kang-hee made several substitutions, while Kim Bo-kyung came closest to equalizing in the 85th minute but failed to latch on to an attempted clearance in front of an empty net.

It was the first meeting between the two nations. Russia has qualified for the World Cup for the first time in 12 years. South Korea, a semifinalist in 2002, will be playing in its eighth consecutive finals.

South Korea beat Switzerland 2-1, while Russia drew with Serbia 1-1 in friendlies on Friday.