Jaeseong Lee of the national soccer team scores the opening goal in the 40th minute of the first half in a friendly match against Iraq held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates on the 6th./Korea Football Association
The Korean national soccer team competing in the AFC (Asian Football Confederation) Asian Cup achieved a hard-fought victory in the final mock test held before the tournament.
Korea, led by coach Jurgen Klinsmann (60, Germany), won 1-0 with midfielder Lee Jae-seong (32, Mainz)’s first-and-dirty goal in a friendly match against Iraq at the New York University Stadium in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE) on the 6th.
Korea’s FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association) ranking is 23rd. Iraq ranks 63rd. Coach Klinsmann excluded key players from the starting list. Son Heung-min (32, Tottenham), Kim Min-jae (28, Bayern Munich), Hwang Hee-chan (28, Wolverhampton), Lee Kang-in (23, Paris Saint-Germain), and Cho Gyu-seong (26, Midtjylland) started on the bench.
In the beginning, Korea allowed the opponent to take dangerous shots and set pieces one after another. Korea had several good shooting opportunities, but they continued to head straight toward the opposing goalkeeper. In the 29th minute of the first half, Oh Hyun-gyu (23, Celtic) hit the net, but the referee declared an offside foul.
In the 40th minute of the first half, Lee Jae-seong lost his balance. He cut into the net with a powerful left-footed shot from just outside the penalty box. As the second half began, Son Heung-min, Kim Min-jae, Hwang Hee-chan, Lee Kang-in, and Cho Gyu-seong all entered the field as substitutes. Korea increased its offensive by inducing the opponent’s corner kicks and increasing touches in the penalty box, but no additional goals were scored.
Lee Kang-in got into a fight with an opponent at the end of the second half and received a yellow card and was sent off due to accumulated warnings. Korea was disappointed with the referee’s decision because the opponent pushed Lee Kang-in’s face out of nervousness. However, as the Middle Eastern teams that will meet in the Asian Cup are likely to play provocatively in the second half against Korea, Korea has a task to deal with skillfully.
This Asia Cup opens in Qatar on the 13th. Korea belongs to Group E and will play group league games against Bahrain (86th) on the 15th, Jordan (87th) on the 20th, and Malaysia (130th) on the 25th. Korea has not won since the 1960 tournament held at home. Korea, which is undergoing field training in the UAE, will enter Qatar, the decisive battle site, on the 10th. Jordan, Korea’s group opponent, previously won 2-1 in a closed-door evaluation match against the host nation, Qatar (58th). Qatar is the winning team of the previous 2019 competition.
2024-01-06 15:00:00
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