*This content was translated by AI.
When the South Korean U-23 national soccer team led by Lee Min-sung suffered a shocking defeat to Vietnam, local media and fans in China mocked it. It is the first disgrace in 23 years in Korean soccer."
Chinese media "Sina Sports" highlighted South Korea's defeat against Vietnam on the 24th (Korea Standard Time), saying, "Is it the Korean national team, or South Korea, which lost three games and lost its first match against Vietnam, was angry."
South Korea, led by head coach Lee Min-sung, lost to Vietnam (2-2, PSO 6-7) after a penalty shootout in the third place match of the 2026 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Asian Cup at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
"South Korea seemed to be chasing throughout the game," Sina Sports said. "With Nguyen Dinh Park's exit, he failed to win even though he had a numerical advantage at the end of the second half and through 30 minutes of extra time."
Even the media said, "South Korea poured in as many as 32 shots but did not win. In the penalty shootout, the goalkeeper was defeated after a rough match in which he could not read all seven kick directions."
In particular, he emphasized the historical significance of this defeat. The media said, "It is the first time in history that the Korean U-23 national team lost to Vietnam," adding, "It lost three of six games in succession to Uzbekistan, Japan and Vietnam in this tournament." There was no appearance of Kang's team at all," he criticized.
It is also a humiliation and a new disgrace that the adult national team has experienced in 23 years since losing 0-1 to Vietnam in the 2003 Asian Cup qualifying round, he added.
Chinese soccer fans also mocked him. Comments such as "Sina Sports" and "Sohoo Dotcom" such as "Korea's true skills were revealed because it did not bribe the referee," "The fact that one more player did not win in more than 40 minutes proves that the power was weak," and "Vietnam was really strong."
In particular, "Vietnam did much better," he said on "Sohoo Dotcom," adding, "Even the fighting spirit of Vietnamese players was much brighter than that of Korea."
South Korea got off to a shaky start in the 30th minute of the first half, giving up the first goal to Nguyen Quoc Viet in Vietnam's counterattack. Kim Tae-won, who was replaced in the 24th minute of the second half, scored an equalizer, but two minutes later, Dean Park allowed a free-kick goal and lost the lead again.
South Korea, which had a numerical advantage with Dean Park's exit in the 40th minute of the second half, launched a wave offensive and led the game to an extended period with Shin Min-ha's dramatic equalizer in extra time in the second half. However, he failed to break through Vietnam's defense, where 10 people fought for 30 minutes before and after extra time, and eventually bowed his head as his seventh kicker Bae Hyun-seo's shot in the penalty shootout was blocked.
As a result, Korea finished the tournament in fourth place and went home empty-handed. Lee Min-sung, who exposed unstable performance in each game from the group stage to the quarterfinals, semifinals, and third place matches, finished the tournament bitterly, leaving a humiliating record of his first loss to Vietnam.
China, on the other hand, is in a festive mood. China has written its own soccer history at this tournament. Previously, China's U-23 national team was a weak team that never passed the Asian Cup group stage. The previous group league performance was only 2 wins and 13 losses.
However, in this tournament, he advanced to the tournament for the first time in history, and made it to the final stage beyond the semifinals for the first time in history. China will try to win the U-23 Asian Cup against Japan at midnight on the 25th.
In addition, China, which suffered from poverty with only one goal in four games before the semifinals, defeated Kim Sang-sik's Vietnam 3-0 at an important road where it was at stake to advance to the finals. However, Lee Min-sung bowed his head in a humiliating loss in the third-place match, which deserved to be called the last pride.
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*This content was translated by AI.
