South Korean coach denies intentionally avoiding Japan in Asian Cup round of 16

Draw with Malaysia, South Korea avoids facing Japan in the round of 16 of the 2023 Asian Cup

The Korean team was rated much higher than Malaysia but only got a 3-3 draw in the final round of the group stage (Group E) of the 2023 Asian Cup. With this result, coach Jurgen Klinsmann's team ranked second in the group, meeting Saudi Arabia in the round of 16 of the 2023 Asian Cup.

The draw of the South Korean team made many people suspect that this team intentionally did not want to win the group to avoid strong opponent Japan in the next round.

HLV Hàn Quốc phủ nhận cố ý tránh Nhật Bản ở vòng 1/8 Asian Cup - 1 — Coach Jurgen Klinsmann was surprised with the draw against Malaysia (Photo: AFC).

However, coach Jurgen Klinsmann affirmed that the goal of the Korean team is to win, even win beautifully against Malaysia, but in football nothing can be predicted.

"I affirm that there is no way the Korean team will avoid Japan in the round of 16. Our goal is to beat Malaysia to top the group, thereby creating motivation for the next matches.

As you can see, it was a tough match. Both teams gave their all until the last minute. But it's clearly a disappointing result," said coach Jurgen Klinsmann.

In this match, the Korean team opened the score in the 21st minute thanks to a header by Jeong Woo Yeong. After that, the two teams had an exciting score chase. Right in the last minutes of extra time of the match, Malaysia equalized 3-3, creating an earthquake in the 2023 Asian Cup, and returned home with their heads held high.

Explaining the loss, coach Klinsmann was not satisfied with the first two goals conceded and said that Hwang In Beom was fouled before Faisal Halim scored the equalizer 1-1, and the referee was wrong when he said that Arif Aiman was fouled leading to a penalty for the second goal.

But the German strategist said the Korean team only had themselves to blame for missing many opportunities, he said: "No matter how many goals you score, if you don't score the next goal, in the end, you can still be tied.

We will have serious discussions to learn from experiences in defensive situations against quick counterattacks."

Evaluating the opponent Saudi Arabia in the round of 16, coach Klinsmann said that Japan's goal is to win the championship, so they must win every match.

HLV Hàn Quốc phủ nhận cố ý tránh Nhật Bản ở vòng 1/8 Asian Cup - 2 — Son Heung Min was voted the best player of the match, but he was not happy (Photo: AFC).

Meanwhile, striker Son Heung Min expressed his disappointment after being held to a 3-3 draw by the weak Malaysian team. The Korean superstar affirmed that this was a big lesson for him and his teammates.

"Obviously this is a disappointing result and hard to accept. The Korean team needs to improve in all aspects, not only tactically, but also mentally.

Korea must not only be ready to face strong opponents, but also be wary of weaker opponents. Everyone says Korea and Japan are the favorites, but to reach the final, we will have to overcome countless difficulties.

Both teams must try very hard if they want to win in the end," Son Heung Min affirmed.

Asian Cup 2023 Round of 16 Match Schedule

18:30 January 28: Australia vs Indonesia

23:00 January 28: Tajikistan vs UAE

18:30 January 29: Iraq vs Jordan

23:00 January 29: Qatar vs Palestine

18:30 January 30: Uzbekistan vs Thailand

23:00 January 30: Saudi Arabia vs South Korea.

18:30 January 31: Bahrain vs Japan

23:00 January 31: Iran vs Syria