Baek Ki-tae, who started after losing to Inni, also caught Tajikistan after extra time and clashed with Saudi Arabia... Chung Jo-joon won for the first time in 23 years
Baek Ki-tae, who started after losing to Inni, also caught Tajikistan after extra time and clashed with Saudi Arabia... Chung Jo-joon won for the first time in 23 years
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"This is really tough. Still, I am surviving no matter what." The U-17 national team led by Coach Baek Ki-tae advanced to the semifinals after a close game of penalty shootout.
South Korea finished the 90th minute with a 2-2 equalizer by Kim Ji-sung at the end of regular time, trailing 1-2 in the quarterfinals of the 2025 Asian Football Confederation U-17 Asian Cup against Tajikistan at the Jida Prince Abdullah al-Faisal Stadium in Saudi Arabia on the 15th (Korea time). Then, they took a 5-3 lead in the subsequent penalty shootout, confirming their advance to the semifinals.
The upcoming U-17 Asian Cup will also serve as a preliminary round for the U-17 FIFA World Cup to be held in November. The number of participating countries has increased significantly from 24 to 48 starting this year. Although the team lost 0-1 to Indonesia in the first round, it already secured a World Cup ticket as it passed the group stage safely.
The match against Tajikistan was not easy, but the team survived after a match to advance to the semifinals. The opponent team is Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia beat Japan in the quarterfinals to join the team. Korea last won the title at the 2002 United Arab Emirates Championship. Just before, Byeon Sung-hwan reached the final at the 2023 Thailand Championship, but was defeated by Japan.
If Korea wins, it will succeed for the first time in 23 years. If Korea beats Saudi Arabia in the semifinal, it will face off against the winner of Uzbekistan and North Korea in the final. As both teams have consistently been strong in national teams by age group, it can be said that their journey is still rough.
The team that hit the ball early in the first half was Korea. In the first minute of the match, Kim Ye-gun broke down the left side. The sharply raised cross flowed due to the defense's mistake, and Park Byung-chan flooded in and connected with a left-footed shot. It was a threatening shot, but he was blocked by goalkeeper Rakhmonkulov.
Korea continued its momentum gradually. In particular, the team actively deployed offense through the sides. However, it was regrettable that Korea did not lead to a goal despite overwhelming opponents throughout the entire period. Park Byung-chan fired a mid-range shot from outside the box in the 21st minute of the first half, and Jeong Hee-seop connected Kim Do-yeon's corner kick with his head in the 39th minute of the first half, but all of them turned a blind eye to the goal.
The score ended 0-0 in the first half. In the end, coach Baek Ki-tae added Jeong Hyeon-woong instead of Kim Ji-hyuk at the beginning of the second half. Unlike in the first half, Tajikistan gradually began to seek counterattacks. Amid the frustrating trend, Korea deployed Kim Ji-sung and Jang Woo-sik at the 21st minute of the second half without Park Byung-chan and Park Seo-joon.
This card worked. At the 22nd minute of the second half, Kim Ji-sung crossed the right side completely and scored a cross from a free situation. Chung Hyeon-woong scored the first goal by scoring an accurate shot past the opponent team's defender with a flying motion. Literally, the replacement card showed strength.
Korea scored in the 28th minute of the second half when Lim Ye-chan finished the ball from outside the box with a powerful left-footed shot. However, VAR held him back. In the previous scene, Kim Ji-sung's handball was declared and the goal was cancelled, seeking a chance to take a 2-0 lead.
Is it because they are young players? When Korea lost the opportunity to take a 2-0 lead, the team lost focus and allowed a run in the 38th minute of the second half. Odiljorda's shot was missed properly, leading to a chaotic situation. Nazriev in front of the goal scored the equalizer.
He made another mistake in defense. Notably, his defense team's goal handling was disappointing. Korea made a fatal mistake in defense in the 40th minute of the second half due to opponent team's pressure. The score was overturned to 1-2 as Ibrahim Zoda scored a direct shot to the net on a pass given by Nazriev that was intercepted.
Still, 먹튀검증 it didn't collapse as it was. When crossing the line in extra time in the second half, the opponent committed a handball foul inside the box. After VAR review for a long time, the referee declared a penalty kick. In the end, kicker Kim Ji-sung scored an equalizer and the regular time ended 2-2.
The penalty shootout was stable. With Park Do-hoon stably blocking Tajikistan's No. 2 kicker Raham Zoda, and Korea's No. 5 kicker succeeded in all of them, confirming their win in the shootout with a score of 5-3.