Late winner helps Korea defeat Australia

Korea edged Australia 2-1 to book their AFC U23 Asian Cup semi-final spot at the King Abdullah Sports City Hall Stadium in Saudi Arabia last night.

The hard-fought quarter-final victory means Korea make a return to the last four stage after missing out in the previous two editions, with defending champions Japan awaiting them in Tuesday’s semi-final.

Korea had to be alert as early as the fourth minute with keeper Hong Seong-min having to produce a low save to deny Jed Drew’s long-range effort before surging upfield to  return the favour a minute later.

Baek Ga-on sent a deep pass to Jang Seok-hwan, who beat his marker and attempted to catch the onrushing Steven Hall off his line but his curling shot sailed over the bar.

The 2020 champions continued to dictate the game with Kang Seong-jin and Kang Min-jun threatening before leaving the Australians stunned in the 21st minute with a brilliantly taken finish by Baek.

Australia were caught napping by Lee Hyun-Yong’s long ball into the box, which fell perfectly for Suwon defender Baek to finish with a fine volley into the back of the net.

Australia looked to respond and thought they had earned a penalty in the 38th minute when Kang Min-jun was flagged for a handball but the decision was overturned following a VAR review.

The half-time break, however, seemed to work wonders for Australia as they showed more attacking intent, with Korea being forced to defend.

The aggressive approach paid off in the 51st minute with Drew initiating the move on the right flank, with the midfielder setting up Luka Jovanovic who rounded Hong Seong-min and buried the ball in the net. 

Australia kept pressing in the closing stages with Shin Min-ha clearing a dangerous ball inside the six-yard-box in the 79th minute, with Aydan Hammond then put clear on goal in the 86th but drilled his effort straight at Hong.

The missed opportunities came back to haunt Australia as Shin Min-ha rose highest to power home Kang Seong-jin’s corner to seal the win in the 89th minute as Korea Republic stayed on course for a second title.

Head coach Lee Min-sung was all smiles after the victory. “I’m extremely grateful to all the players for the way they stayed strong and pushed through a very difficult match,” said Lee.

“We focused on exploiting the space behind Australia and applying strong pressure in midfield and those plans worked really well.

“After conceding, there was a brief moment when the players looked unsettled but they quickly regrouped, corrected the issues and showed great resilience to turn the game around. I’m truly proud of the team.”

“The players showed a strong will to score and then protect the lead but at times, we dropped too deep and a few defensive mistakes happened, which was disappointing.

“Moments like this help us grow as a team. As we look ahead to the semi-final, we’ll work hard to deliver an even better performance.”