After 36 years of waiting, the Korean team beat Saudi Arabia in the penalty shootout at the Asian Cup.
The South Korean team won a ticket to the quarter-finals of the 2023 Asian Cup after defeating Saudi Arabia in a penalty shootout.
The Korean team faces a real challenge when they meet Saudi Arabia in the round of 16 of the 2023 Asian Cup, the match will take place at 7pm on January 30, 2024. Both teams are led by famous coaches. While Roberto Mancini leads the Saudi Arabia team, coach Juergen Klinsmann is in the "hot seat" of the Korean team.
The confrontation between the two leading Asian teams was as tense as expected. The first 45 minutes went by without any goals. It was not until the 46th minute that Abdullah Radif helped Saudi Arabia break the deadlock with the opening goal.
Abdullah Radif escaped after a teammate's error and this player won the one-on-one situation with the Korean team's goalkeeper.
In the following minutes, the match became more exciting when the Korean team was pushed into a difficult position. The Korean team controlled the ball up to 67% but they were stuck in finding a goal. It was not until the 90+9 minute that the Korean team had a goal to equalize the score 1-1. Cho Gue Sung made a close-range header to help coach Juergen Klinsmann's team bring the match back to the starting line.
The score of 1-1 remained after 2 extra periods, forcing the Korean team and Saudi Arabia to enter a penalty shootout. While the Korean team successfully converted their 11m kicks, Saudi Arabia's Sami Al Naji and Abdulrahman Ghareeb missed their kicks. Hwang Hee Chan was the one who took the final 11m kick, helping the Korean team win 4-2 in the shootout to secure a ticket to the next round. Coach Juergen Klinsmann's team will meet Australia in the quarter-finals of the 2023 Asian Cup on February 2.
The South Korean team lost in a penalty shootout to Saudi Arabia in the 1988 Asian Cup final. After 36 years, the Korean team finally won in a penalty shootout against Saudi Arabia in this very tournament.
SheetBest Elevenof Korea wrote: "Sweet revenge after 36 years of waiting. The Korean team entered the quarterfinals of the 2023 Asian Cup after defeating Saudi Arabia in a penalty shootout."
Line-up
Saudi Arabia:Ahmed Al-Kassar; Hassan Altambakti, Ali Lajami, Ali Albulayhi, Saud Abdulhamid, Mohamed Kanno, Abdullah Al-Khaibari, Nasser Aldawsari, Mohammed Alburayk, Saleh Alshehri, Salem Aldawsari
Korea:Jo Hyeon-woo; Jeong Seung-Hyeon, Kim Min-jae, Kim Young-gwon, Kim Tae-hwan, Lee Jae-sung, Hwang In-beom, Seol Young-woo, Lee Kang-in, Jeong Woo-yeong, Son Heung-min
