QATAR South Korea found a 1-1 equalizer in the ninth minute of injury time, before defeating Saudi Arabia 4-2 in a penalty shootout, to reach the quarter-finals of the 2023 Asian Cup.
Main developments of the Saudi Arabia - South Korea match.
At Education City Stadium on the evening of January 30, South Korea was superior in most indicators showing the strength of the attack, such as total shots (22 compared to 14), shots in the penalty area (18-8) and target direction (8-4). The East Asian team also controlled the ball 57%, had 723 passes, 38 crosses compared to 545 and 11 of Saudi Arabia.
However, everything would have been meaningless for Jurgen Klinsmann's army, if not for the timely appearance of Cho Gue-sung in the 6m50 box in the penultimate minute of injury time of the second half. From the right wing, Kim Tae-hwan crossed with his weak left foot to send the ball around to the opposite bottom line, allowing Seol Young-woo to get past the Al-Kassar goalkeeper. The ball went behind for Cho to jump high and head into the empty net to equalize 1-1. More than a year ago, also at this stadium, the striker born in 1998 also scored a brace with his header in the match where Korea lost 2-3 to Ghana in the group stage of the 2022 World Cup.
After Cho scored, almost all of his teammates rushed to hug him to celebrate. Outside the field, coach Klinsmann looked up at the stands, screaming with joy. Korea was like being pulled out of hell.
Son Heung-min celebrates with his teammates after South Korea defeated Saudi Arabia 4-2 in the penalty shootout in the quarter-finals of the 2023 Asian Cup. Photo: Sport Chosun
In the first half, South Korea and Saudi Arabia created a tense match with fierce clashes in the middle of the field. The ball was pushed up to the attack for stars like Son Heung-min or Salem Al Dawsari to perform solo, but there were no good chances.
The most dangerous situation happened in the 41st minute for Saudi Arabia. From a corner kick on the left wing, Saleh Al-Shehri rushed in at the near post and headed the ball hard, hitting the crossbar. Then, Ali Lajami and Salem Al Dawsari headed the ball back against the crossbar, only to be blocked by Kim Min-jae.
At the start of the second half, coach Roberto Mancini replaced Al-Shehri with Abdullah Radif and it took only 40 seconds to make a difference. From a move up the left wing, Al Dawsari controlled the ball in the middle but accidentally created an assist for Radif to break the offside trap and shoot with his left foot across the corner to open the score.
The loss forced coach Klinsmann to make an early change, sending two quality strikers, Hwang Hee-chan and Cho Gue-sung, onto the field. However, facing a tight blue defense, South Korea did not create many opportunities. It was not until the last 10 minutes that they created real pressure on the Saudi Arabian goal.
In the 86th minute, Hwang Hee-chan crossed inside to avoid Hwang In-beom from being marked by anyone, and he cushioned the ball into the near corner, but the Al-Kassar goalkeeper still managed to block it with his foot. Immediately after that, Seol Young-woo and Son Heung-min fired shots but could not get past the dense layer of players in blue. The storm only ended when Al-Kassar blocked Seol Young-woo's header from a tight angle on the left.
The extra 10 minutes of injury time kept the "Taeguk Warriors" from getting an equalizer, putting even more pressure on the Saudi Arabian goal. In the third minute of injury time, Seol Young-woo crossed the ball with his teammate to the bottom left and then crossed the ball for Cho Gue-sung to head the ball over the crossbar. Three minutes later, Hwang Hee-chan shot diagonally from the left wing, the ball bounced just wide of the post. Finally, the result came in the ninth minute of injury time.
Cho Gue-sung (red shirt) headed in the equalizer for South Korea against Saudi Arabia. Photo: Sport Chosun
After a 1-1 draw, the two teams entered extra time. Korea, with better physical strength and a mental advantage, continued to press, but Park Yong-woo, Kim Min-jae, Cho Gue-sung and Son Heung-min all missed. In the 115th minute, Lee Kang-in calmly handled the ball in the penalty area, dribbling past a player and shooting diagonally, but Al-Kassar's reflexes were superb. Saudi Arabia counterattacked in the second minute of extra time when Abdulrahman Ghareeb accelerated down the right wing and passed inside for Radif to connect but did not trouble Jo Hyeon-woo, ending 120 tense minutes.
In the penalty shootout, South Korea won the first three rounds thanks to Son Heung-min, Kim Young-gwon and Cho Gue-sung. Mohamed Kanno and Saud Abdulhamid also started well for Saudi Arabia, before Sami Al Naji was caught by goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo with a low kick into the left corner. Witnessing Abdulrahman Ghareeb repeat his teammate's mistake in the fourth round, coach Mancini immediately went into the tunnel, not watching Hwang Hee-chan take the decisive kick to help South Korea win 4-2. This result could decide the fate of the Italian coach in the Saudi Arabian team, which has had many conflicts.
In the quarterfinals, South Korea will face Australia on February 2. The kangaroo team had an easy 4-0 victory over Indonesia with the advantage of two more days of rest.
Starting lineup
Korea: Jo Hyeon-woo, Kim Young-gwon, Kim Min-jae, Jung Seung-hyeon, Seol Young-woo, Hwang In-beom, Lee Jae-sung, Kim Tae-hwan, Jeong Woo-yeong, Lee Kang-in, Son Heung-min
Saudi Arabia: Ahmed Al-Kassar, Hassan Al Tambakti, Ali Lajami, Ali Al-Bulayhi, Saud Abdulhamid, Nasser Al-Dawsari, Abdullah Al Khaibari, Mohamed Kanno, Mohammed Al-Burayk, Saleh Al-Shehri, Salem Al Dawsari.
Hieu Luong - Vnexpress.net
Comment (0)