AYG Football: Republic of Korea seal semi spot after winning “Battle of Koreas”

Story by Dan Azmie/Red Sports. Pictures by Lai Jun Wei/Red Sports.

Jalan Besar Stadium, Tuesday, June 30, 2009 – The Republic of Korea have booked a spot in the Asian Youth Games football semi-finals after beating neighbouring rivals the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea 3-0 in an assured display.

Impressive left-back Lee Huichan put South Korea 1-0 up when he scored a surprise goal near the halfway line in the 24th minute that left opposing goalkeeper Kwon Kun Choi red-faced.

Star striker Suh Myeongwon doubled the scoreline minutes before halftime through a free kick on the right, before Lee Huichan scored a brace in the second-half with another thunderbolt that almost ripped the net.

For North Korea, the match showed that they were well and truly outplayed in this match, as their opponents ran them ragged in every department, showing that they are head and shoulders above the rest of the group (literally and figuratively).

From the start, South Korea decided to lay siege at their opponent’s half, peppering shots which whistled over a couple of times.

In the 8th minute, Suh Myeongwon, who plays for the Portsmouth youth team, measured a through ball from near the halfway line which beat the static defence and found Lee Wooseok.

The midfielder was clean through on goal, and had plenty of time to shoot, but launched a disappointing finish while the North Koreans knew that they had got out of jail.

South Korea were controlling the proceedings and rarely gave the ball away while their opponents were contented to sit back.

In the 18th minute, South Korea’s central defender and captain Lim Keunyoung showed great vision to launch a precise long ball from deep in his own half. The ball eventually found winger Kim Sunbin but he found the angle too wide to hit the target.

North Korea failed to heed the warning calls and eventually paid the price on the 24th minute mark.

A magical free kick from deep in the left side by Lee Huichan looped and landed at the back of the net to the delight of the South Koreans. Lee himself celebrated in disbelief as he probably did not mean to score.

Despite the one-goal deficit, the one-way traffic for this battle continued as South Korea pulled another stunner twelve minutes later.

A free kick was won five metres outside the penalty box wide on the right, and the two-man wall was caught napping as Shim Je-hyeok sent in a curler which Lim Keunyoung pounced with an exquisite backheel near the six-yard box, catching a defender by surprise.

Poor clearance by the North Koreans then allowed Suh Myeongwon to drive in and arrow the ball low into the keeper’s left. It took a slight deflection off opposing defender Ri Nam Jun to deceive the goalkeeper as South Korea went 2-0 up.

It was clearly Suh Myeongwon’s night as he proceeded to flaunt a dash of class by juggling the ball over a defender, playing a one-two with Shim. Though his resulting shot eventually went wide, it could have been a fantastic goal for the player dubbed “South Korea’s Berbatov” as the first half ended.

In the second half, the script stayed the same as South Korea kept on plugging in and practically camped in their opponent’s half.

On the 46th minute mark, Choi Jaehun found himself with a free header, which should have sealed the game for the South Koreans, but the North Korean goalkeeper Kwon made a point-blank save to keep the scoreline down for his side.

With no answer at hand, the nerves started to show for North Korea.

Paek Ri Hyok dived in with a two-legged studs-first challenge at the 67th minute, which drew roars of derision from the crowd. Paek should have been sent off and was fortunate to escape with just a warning.

That challenge, however, roused the South Koreans to silence their opponents once and for all as they launched an immediate response.

Another loose ball form thirty metres out from the North Korean box was met by Lee Huichan again. In a blink of an eye, the ball was slammed into the top corner of net in just one touch.

Drawing rapturous applause from the crowd, it was a truly scorcher of a shot that would be a contender for the goal of the tournament.

Lee Huichan – and his team – was probably gunning for the celebration of the tournament as well, as the boys did their best impression of a railroad train by going on their knees and crawling in sync.

The wonder strike seemed to have turned Lee Huichan into an instant celebrity, as the crowd called on him to shoot each time the ball found his feet.

Another free kick on the left side ten minutes later presented Lee with a chance to complete his hat trick. Though Lee’s shot swerved past a sea of players to find the keeper, who managed to push the ball away minutes before the full-time whistle sounded.

At the post-match press conference, both coaches had to deal with tough questions from the press, who were eager to learn about the political significance of the match.

“There is nothing special,” said Republic of Korea coach Chung Jungyong said when asked about the significance of the result. “We needed to win. We expected a really hard game, and this was one of our toughest.”

When asked whether there was any extra pressure to be more respectful towards each other, Chung continued: “The players are only 14. They are normal students. We teach them to always have respect to opponents, and there is nothing special between the North and South.”

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea assistant coach was tight-lipped after the game and suggested that the boys were worn out physically: “The players’ condition is not good. We had a match a few days earlier.”

South Korean striker Suh Myeongwon was asked about his feelings playing against the North Koreans, he said, “Even though I feel sorry for them, as we are the same people, it is still a game. A win is a win.”

“I’m glad because he (Berbatov) is a good player. I’m happy that people are calling me that,” Suh responded with a smile when asked whether he knew that he was being compared to Berbatov.

As for two-goal hero Lee Huichan, he revealed that he was used to scoring long-range belters back in his club.

Lee commented, “I scored a few similar ones back in Korea. I play for the Pohang Steelers under-15 and I’ve tried those kind of shots before.”