Looking for a third consecutive Asian Games title, Hwang Sun-hong put on a big show against Kyrgyzstan in the Round of 16, winning 5-1. They will face hosts China in the quarterfinals.
Hwang Sun-hong’s men’s football team advanced to the quarterfinals of the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games with a 5-1 victory over Kyrgyzstan, who overcame a one-goal deficit thanks to a brace from Jung Woo-young and goals from Baek Seung-ho, Cho Young-wook and Hong Hyun-seok, at the Jinhua Sports Center Stadium in Jinhua, China on Sunday (June 27).
South Korea will face China, who beat Qatar 1-0 at the same time, at 8:30 p.m. next month.
Hwang Sun-hong opted for a 4-2-3-1 formation centered on ace Lee Kang-in, just as he did against Bahrain in the third round of the group stage.
However, the lineup was slightly different. Lee Kwang-yeon, who was in goal in the first and second games, is back in goal. In defense, Park Jin-seop and Kim Tae-hyun, the “eldest” two, played as a center back combination. Seol Young-woo and Hwang Jae-won were on the left and right flanks. The midfield consisted of captains Baek Seung-ho and Jung Ho-yeon, with Jung Woo-young, Lee Kang-in, and Uhm Won-sang in the second line. The front line was led by Park Jae-yong, who has one goal in the tournament. The jerseys were red with white trim, and the team played with determination.
Kyrgyzstan lined up in a 5-3-2 with five defenders. Artem Priadkin was in goal, while Adillet Nurlan, Eralman Akilbekov, Baiaman Kumarbai, Nurbol Bartibekov, and Aslan Bekverdinov made up the back five. Adillet Kanibekov, Islam Mezitov, and Ernas Avilov formed the midfield, while Atay Ilyichbek and Maxat Aligulov played up top. Kyrgyzstan wore all-white jerseys, top and bottom.
The first half started with Kyrgyzstan on the front foot. While the Koreans slowly rotated the ball and looked for opportunities, Kyrgyzstan didn’t drop back and tried to press with the flow of the ball. The Koreans focused on creating cracks in the Kyrgyz defense with switching play and aggressive space penetration. Lee Kang-in was also involved in the attack, moving up and down the flanks instead of just in the center.
The first shot of the game came in the fifth minute. Seol Young-woo broke into the box from a high position. A quick one-touch pass from the center broke up the Kyrgyz pressure, and the ball found its way into space for Seol, who struck it with his right foot, but it sailed into the side netting.
Kyrgyzstan counterattacked. In the seventh minute, Aligulov made a quick run down the right flank from the center of the field. Seol tried to chase after him, but Aligulov won the ball contest, cut into the center and struck with his left foot. Fortunately, the shot was far from the goal.
Jung Woo-young and Lee Kang-in shined. In the ninth minute, Jung Woo-young set up Lee Kang-in, who returned the favor with a clever backheel pass to Jung Woo-young. Jeong took a left-footed shot toward the corner of the goal, but it went wide of the post.
In the 11th minute, the Koreans were awarded a penalty kick. Seol Young-woo was brought down by an opponent’s tackle as he tried to penetrate the box. Baek Seung-ho stepped up to take the kick and rattled the net with a powerful right-footed shot.
A second goal came shortly afterward, and it was a quick one. A minute later, Jung Woo-young headed in a cross from Uhm Won-sang on the right flank. Striker Park Jae-yong drew the defense in and left Jung Woo-young with an open space.
The national team never let up on offense. They turned the ball around, drew their opponents out, and then quickly played penetrating passes into open spaces. However, the Kyrgyz defense held strong and the third goal did not come. In the 22nd minute, Jeong Woo-young made a brilliant dribbling run down the left flank before sending a cross into the center of the box.
In the 24th minute, a cross from the right side was headed by Park Jae-yong, but the defensive blocking prevented him from getting enough power and he headed it straight at the keeper. Lee Kang-in was quick on the counterattack, delivering a left-footed pass to Park Jae-yong, but the defender cleared it away with his head. A minute later, Park’s cross was saved by the goalkeeper, who leapt out of the way.
Kyrgyzstan pulled a goal back. In the 29th minute, Baek Seung-ho received a pass and made a turn move, but lost the ball to opposing striker Aligulov. With the two center backs wide open, it was a one-on-one opportunity that Aligulov took advantage of with a precise shot into the corner of the goal to make it 2-1.
In the 32nd minute, Jung Woo-young rattled the net again after receiving a penetrating pass from behind, only to be denied by an offside flag. Lee Kang-in showed his ‘class’. From the left flank, he sent a high cross with the outside of his left foot instead of his right. It flew precisely to Park Jae-yong, but he couldn’t get a hand on it and it didn’t turn into a scoring chance.
In the 40th minute, he had one defender in front of him and easily beat him with a brilliant footwork before crossing to the center, but the defense cut him off. In the first half, Park Mazie played a perfect penetrating pass to Uhm Won-sang, but this time, it didn’t lead to a goal.
In the 45th minute, Lee Kang-in’s left-footed cross found Jung Woo-young. Jung Woo-young had a header right in front of the goal, but it was saved by the goalkeeper. The first half ended 2-1.
Coach Hwang Sun-hong took off Jung Ho-yeon and Park Jae-yong at the start of the second half and introduced Hong Hyun-seok and Cho Young-wook, hoping to avoid being chased by the opposition after scoring the first two goals.
Early in the second half, Lee Kang-in caught the ball on the halfway line and beat his opponent with a two-footed dribble. However, this time, he was unable to follow up.
The national team managed to avoid a goal. In the eighth minute of the second half, Seol Young-woo headed away a pass from the opponent’s backline, and Kyrgyzstan immediately played a space pass to their frontline striker Ilyichbek. Ilyichbek used his speed to open up space behind the Korean national team and had an effective shot on goal. Luckily, Lee Kwang-yeon made the save.
The Koreans countered with a cross from the left flank that Cho Young-wook leapt to meet with a header. After bouncing once on the ground, the ball flew on an unstoppable course, and the goalkeeper barely got a fingertip to it. The national team attacked. Lee Kang-in spun around and slipped a penetrating pass to Seol Young-woo, who was overlapping. When the defense cleared the ball to the center, Hwang Jae-won rushed in and took a non-stop shot. However, it went straight at the goalkeeper.
In the 14th minute of the second half, Lee Kang-in sent a pass to a penetrating Cho Young-wook. However, the goalkeeper made the save. Soon after, Lee Kang-in was replaced by Ko Young-joon, who finished the game in the 58th minute.
The national team avoided a goal down. In the 20th minute of the second half, during a Kyrgyzstan counterattack, midfielder Abilov drove the ball all alone and took a surprise shot. For a moment, the ball appeared to rattle the net, but fortunately it hit the side netting and was cleared off the line.
In the 26th minute of the second half, the national team missed a crucial chance. In an attack that started with a corner kick, Baek Seung-ho met a cross from the flank with a diving header. The ball hit the ground, bounced, and appeared to be headed for the corner of the goal, but the opposing goalkeeper made a great reflex save.
In the 28th minute of the second half, the Koreans had a chance to add another goal. Seol Young-woo’s cross hit the right arm of defender Bekverdinov. The referee didn’t blow the whistle, but the players claimed handball and a penalty kick was awarded. Jung Woo-young stepped up to take the spot kick and neatly converted it for a 3-1 lead. Seol Young-woo earned two penalty kicks on the day.
With momentum on their side, the Koreans added one more goal. This time, it was substitute Cho Young-wook. Ko Young-joon spotted him slipping out of the defense’s line of sight and slipped a pass to him, who found the corner of the net with a strong right-footed shot.
Hong Hyun-seok also found the back of the net in the 30th minute. The national team attacked the left flank, and when substitute Ahn Jae-joon’s shot deflected off a defender’s foot and into the hands of the goalkeeper, the onrushing Hong Hyun-seok rushed in and finished with a simple touch.
The game came to a screeching halt as the one-goal lead quickly turned into a four-goal advantage, with South Korea eventually winning by four goals.
With the win over Kyrgyzstan, Hwang Sun-Hong scored the most goals in a single Asian Games tournament in history. He has now scored 21 goals in four games at the tournament, surpassing his previous tally of 19 goals at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games in the round of 16.
South Korea’s opponent will be hosts China.
China defeated Qatar 1-0 in the round of 16 at the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games at the Huanglong Sports Center Stadium on Sunday (June 27).
Han Zhiqi was in goal for China, with Liu Yang, Zhang Shengrong, Huang Jiahui and Wang Jianao forming the back four. Wang Haijian, Dai Weijun, and Gao Tianyi started in the middle. Tao Changrong, Tan Long, and Fang Hao attacked the Qatari goal.
For Qatar, Youssef Balideh started in goal, while the backline consisted of Jassem Abdulsalem, Mohammed Aiashi, Abdullah Al-Ali, and Abdulrahman Juma. Nabil Irfan and Osama Al-Tayri were in the back three, while Mohammed Surag, Mostafa Masal, and Damim Al-Abdulrah were in the second, and Ahmed Husham Ali Al-Rawi was up front.
China jumped out to an early lead against Qatar in the first half. In the third minute of the first half, on a counterattack, Tao Changrong rushed onto a cross in front of the goal and slotted home a header to give China the lead.
After the goal, China continued to push Qatar hard. They utilized Tao Changrong, Tan Long, and Dai Weijun to push Qatar forward. However, no further goals were scored, and the first half ended with a 1-0 Chinese lead.
In the early stages of the second half, Qatar pressured China to try and equalize the game. In the fourth minute of the second half, Al-Rawi made a sharp break from the right side of the Chinese penalty box to get in front of the goal, but his subsequent cross was deflected the wrong way.
China responded immediately. In the 10th minute of the second half, Dai Wei Jun’s cross found Tan Long in front of the goal, but he tangled with the defense and couldn’t get a good header on it.
China missed a crucial chance. In the 11th minute of the second half, Gao Tianyi made a penetrating pass and found Tang Hao in front of the goal. Tang Hao immediately beat the goalkeeper to the ball, but the ball went into the side netting instead of the empty goal and China was unable to extend its lead.
China continued to dominate the attack. In the 16th minute of the second half, China earned a free-kick opportunity in front of the Qatari penalty box, but the shot went wide. On the ensuing attacking opportunity, Liu Yang sent in a cross with a quick overlap, but unfortunately, Tan Long in front of the goal was unable to receive the cross in a scramble.
Qatar took their chances on the counter-attack. In the 18th minute, Masal’s cross found the head of Al-Rawi just inside the penalty box, but his attempt from a relatively long distance was not precise enough to find the back of the net.
China and Qatar continued to test the opposition goal, but after the midway point of the second half, players struggled with fitness, often losing the ball in the center of the pitch and were unable to create any threatening chances in front of the opposition goal.
With one player from each team sent off, the game ultimately ended in a 1-0 victory for China, who defended their early first-half lead.
South Korea is the most decorated nation in men’s soccer at the Asian Games with five gold, three silver and three bronze medals. After winning back-to-back silver medals in Manila in 1954, Tokyo in 1958 and Jakarta in 1962, South Korea tied with Myanmar in the final in Bangkok in 1970 to share the title under the rules at the time. In 1978, South Korea and North Korea tied 0-0 in Bangkok to win the gold medal together.
South Korea won its first solo title in Seoul in 1986. They beat Saudi Arabia 2-0 in the final to top the podium.
Since then, however, the team has struggled somewhat. After losing to Iran in the semifinals of the 1990 Beijing Games for bronze, South Korea lost to Uzbekistan 0-1 in the semifinals of the 1994 Hiroshima Asian Games after a rain shower of shots, and then lost to Kuwait in the third and fourth place matches. At the 1998 Bangkok Games, they didn’t even make it to the quarterfinals, losing to host Thailand in the semifinals.바카라
The rules for men’s soccer at the Asian Games were changed in 2002 in Busan to allow only players under 23 to compete, with three wildcards over 24. At the Busan Asian Games, Korea mobilized its 2002 World Cup quartet of Park Ji-sung, Lee Young-pyo, and Lee Chun-soo, but ultimately finished with a bronze medal after losing to Iran on penalties in the semifinals. After reaching the quarterfinals at the 2006 Doha Asian Games, South Korea did not have a long association with the title until the bronze medal at the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games.
However, they won their first title in 28 years at the 2014 Incheon Asian Games, beating North Korea 1-0 in the final, and then won back-to-back titles at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games. Hwang Sun-hong is now knocking on the door of a historic feat of three consecutive titles, and he has improved his chances of achieving it by winning the group stage and then the round of 16 by a wide margin.