*This content was translated by AI.
Lee Min-sung (53), who led the team to the semifinals of the 2026 Asian Football Confederation (U-23) Asian Cup, and Kim Sang-sik (50), the Vietnamese national soccer team coach, bowed side by side in the semifinals.
South Korea, led by head coach Lee Min-sung, lost to archrival Japan 0-1 in the semifinals of the tournament at King Abdullah Sports City Hall Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on the 20th (Korea time).
South Korea, which struggled against Japan in the number of shots in the first half, was defeated in the 36th minute of the first half without overcoming the first run allowed by a corner kick.
South Korea's defeat as a U-23 national team was actually a humiliating result, given that Japan formed a U-21 national team two years younger to participate in the tournament.
Moreover, Lee Min-sung was criticized for his performance throughout the tournament, as he narrowly passed the group stage after losing 0-2 to Uzbekistan, who played for the U-21 national team, so the aftermath of the shock defeat against Korea and Japan is expected to intensify.
Then, in the match held at Saudi Prince Abdullah Alfaisal Sports City Stadium, "Kim Sang-sik" Vietnam was completely defeated by China 0-3.
Vietnam passed Group A in all three previous rounds and beat the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the quarterfinals, reaching the semifinals for the first time in eight years since Park Hang-seo, but collapsed helplessly to China, which was the first time to advance to the tournament.
On this day, Vietnam was on par with China in ball possession, but it fell to 7-16 in the number of shots. In the 29th minute of the second half, when they were trailing 0-2, they self-destructed when even a player left the game came out.
As Lee Min-sung and Kim Sang-sik were eliminated from the semifinals amid humiliating results, the showdown between the Korean coaches will be held in the third place final, not the final.
It was the first time in eight years that two Korean coaches reached the semifinals at the 2018 tournament since Kim Bong-gil's South Korea and Park Hang-seo's Vietnam. At that time, South Korea was eliminated in the semifinals, while Vietnam reached the finals, and the Korean coaches' showdown in the finals was canceled.
Through this competition, attention was paid again to the possibility of a Korean head coach's final showdown for the first time in history, but this time, it went back to nothing.
According to the results of the semifinal match, the final match of this tournament will be played by China and Japan, and the third-place match will be played by South Korea and Vietnam. South Korea and Vietnam will first play the third place match at King Abdullah Sports City at 0 a.m. on the 24th, and Japan and China will face off in the final the next day.
As the Olympics are not held this year, it has nothing to do with the final results of this year's event and the right to participate in the Olympics. Instead, the third-place match will be held as the results of the AFC U-23 Asian Cup finals will be largely reflected in the allocation of the draw port (seed) two years after the Los Angeles (LA) Olympic qualifiers.
South Korea ranked third in the 2013 and 2018 tournaments, but failed to reach third place after losing to Jordan and Qatar, respectively. It is Vietnam's first time in the third place match. South Korea has an overwhelming advantage with six wins and three draws in the past between South Korea and Vietnam's U-23 national teams.
Japan, which reached the final, will try to win for the second time in a row and for the third time in its career, and China for the first time in history. Japan is the most winning team at the top of the 2016 and 2024 tournaments, and China is trying to win the tournament for the first time by reaching the final.
- Final: Vietnam vs China, 0:00 a.m. on the 25th
- Third place match: South Korea vs Vietnam, 0:00 a.m. on the 24th
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*This content was translated by AI.
