Kim Eun-joong went beyond the group stage, the first gateway to ‘Again 2019’, as ‘undefeated’.
The Korean national under-20 (U-20) soccer team, led by coach Kim Eun-joong, drew 0-0 with Gambia in the third group F match held at Mendoza Stadium in Argentina on the 29th (Korean time).스포츠토토
Korea, which confirmed its advance to the round of 16 early as a result of the second game, drew in the third game and ended the group league with an ‘undefeated march’ of 1 win, 2 draws (5 points), following Gambia (2 wins, 1 draw, 7 points) and F 2nd place confirmed.
In the U-20 World Cup, 12 teams in 1st and 2nd place in each group and the top 4 teams in 3rd place advance to the Round of 16.
Kim Eun-joong will play in the round of 16 against Ecuador (2-1, goal loss +9), second in Group B, at Santiago del Estero Stadium on June 2nd at 6:00 am Korean time.
Ecuador, our opponent in the round of 16, has a good memory of winning 1-0 with Lee Kang-in’s pass and Choi Jun’s goal in the semi-finals when Korea won runner-up in the 2019 Polish tournament.
In the final match of Group F, which was held at the same time, France (3 points, 0 goal loss), in which 10 players fought, won 3-1 against Honduras (1 point) and moved up to 3rd place in Group E, but Tunisia (3 points, 0 goal loss), 3rd place in Group E, won. +1) and failed to advance to the round of 16 due to goal difference.
Japan (three points), which was pushed back to third place in Group C, also finished at the bottom among the six third-place teams, experiencing its first elimination from the group stage in 22 years since the 2001 tournament.
As the Group F schedule ended, all the teams advancing to the round of 16 were confirmed.
Argentina, Uzbekistan, New Zealand (above Group A), USA, Ecuador, Slovakia (above Group B), Colombia, Israel (above Group C), Brazil, Italy, Nigeria (above Group D), England, Uruguay, Tunisia (above Group E) Group), Gambia, and Korea (above Group F) passed the group stage.
Let’s go beyond the round of 16 to the quarterfinals
(Mendosa = Yonhap News) Reporter Lim Hwa-young = 2023 FIFA Under 20 (U-20) World Cup Group F Group F match held at Mendoza Stadium in Argentina on the afternoon of the 28th (local time) National team players pose for a commemorative photo during the match between Korea and Gambia.
With the advance to the round of 16 confirmed the day before, coach Kim Eun-joong conducted a large-scale rotation against Gambia in consideration of the physical distribution of the players.
Coach Kim changed the starting list of seven players, leaving only Lee Yeong-joon (Kimcheon), Lee Seung-won (Gangwon), Kang Seong-jin (Seoul), and Kim Ji-su (Seongnam) among the players who played in the second match against Honduras on the 26th.
In addition, defender Choi Seok-hyeon (Dankook University) was sent off with two yellow cards in the match against Honduras, and goalkeeper Kim Joon-hong (Kim Cheon) received one yellow card each in the match against France and Honduras, and was unable to play in the match against Gambia due to ‘accumulated warnings’.
Park Seung-ho (Incheon), who managed to score a goal against Honduras, had to quit the tournament altogether due to an ankle fracture injury.
In the face of Gambia, Korea came out with a 4-2-3-1 tactic, with Lee Yeong-jun at the forefront and Lee Ji-han (Freiburg), Lee Seung-won, and Kang Seong-jin in the second line.
Park Hyun-bin (Incheon) and Lee Chan-wook (Gyeongnam) were in charge of defensive midfielders, and Choi Ye-hoon (Busan), Hwang In-taek (E-Land), Kim Ji-soo, and Cho Young-gwang (Seoul) formed a four-back. Moon Hyeon-ho (Chungnam Asan) put on goalkeeper gloves.
Cho Yeong-kwang ‘no one can stop’
( 2023 FIFA Under 20 (U-20) World Cup Group F Group F match held at Mendoza Stadium in Argentina on the afternoon of the 28th (local time) In the first half match between Korea Republic and Gambia, Cho Young-kwang breaks through the opponent’s defense and continues to attack.
From the beginning of the first half, Kim Eun-joong-ho did not overdo it and played a search game.
In the 11th minute of the first half, Kang Seong-jin, who received the ball from a corner kick from the right, attempted a left-footed shot from the right side of the penalty area, but was hit by a defender and missed the goal. It was Korea’s first shot of the day.
Gambia’s offensive was also heavy. In the 21st minute of the first half, Bojang Amada’s header crossed the crossbar, and in the 27th minute of the first half, Balio Bar’s surprise shot from the left side of the penalty area was also embraced by goalkeeper Moon Hyeon-ho.
Korea tried to find a clue to the attack by Kang Seong-jin’s breakthrough on the right flank, but the Gambia’s strong defensive wall was unable to break down and the first half ended without a goal. Korea failed to attempt an effective shot during the first half.
With the start of the second half, Gambia stepped up the attacking line and went on the offensive.
In the second half of the second half, Korea blocked a goal with a super save by Gambia’s guarantee attempt from the front of the goal area, with goalkeeper Moon Hyeon-ho flying away.
Moon Hyun-ho ‘stops everything’
2023 FIFA Under 20 (U-20) World Cup Group F Group F match held at Mendoza Stadium in Argentina on the afternoon of the 28th (local time) Korea Goalkeeper Moon Hyeon-ho blocks an opponent’s shot during the second half match between Gambia and Gambia.
Goalkeeper Moon Hyeon-ho overcame the crisis by blocking Mansour Mbaye’s powerful left-footed shot from the left side of the penalty area in the 5th minute of the second half.
Korea started a counterattack, and in the 12th minute of the second half, Seong-Jin Kang attempted a strong left-footed shot from the left side of the penalty area, which was directed toward the front of the goalkeeper, leaving regret.
In the 12th minute of the second half, manager Kim Eun-joong strengthened the front line by putting in Kim Yong-hak (Portimonense) and Bae Jun-ho (Daejeon), who were waiting on the bench.
Korea overcame the crisis with Moon Hyeon-ho’s super save again. In the 22nd minute of the second half, Gambia Salifu Kolay’s strong left-footed shot was reversed, and Mun Hyun-ho struggled to beat it with his hand, and the ball hit the post.
In the 25th minute of the second half, Gambia changed Mamin Hunt’s right-footed shot from the right side of the penalty area with his right foot in front of the goalpost and shook the net, but the assistant referee’s offside flag was raised first.
Korea, which counterattacked Gambia’s offensive, failed to score in the end, but congratulated itself on advancing to the round of 16 with a good record of ‘undefeated in the group stage’.