'Shooting number 43-0 → 7 goals explosion' Korea-Japan match to Japan and the Philippines 7-0 to achieve 'the semifinal match between Korea and Japan' [Women's Asian Cup]

*This content was translated by AI.

There was nothing unusual about it. The Korea-Japan match of fate was reached in the semifinals of the 2026 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women's Asian Cup.

Japan defeated the Philippines 7-0 in the quarterfinals of the tournament at Stadium Australia in Sydney, Australia on the 15th (Korea Standard Time). Japan is eighth in the FIFA rankings and the Philippines is 41st.

Japan, which led 2-0 in the first half with consecutive goals by Tanaka Mina and Koga Toko at the end of the first half, added back-to-back goals from Chiba Remina, Matsukubo Manaka, Koga, Momoko Tanikawa and Riko Ueki in the second half to win by a huge seven-goal margin.

Japan's ball possession exceeded 85% on the day, and the number of shots was 43-0, which was truly overwhelming.

Japan has confirmed its advance to the Women's World Cup finals for 10 consecutive times since the first tournament in 1991. In this tournament, two more teams will go straight to the World Cup finals through the playoffs between the semifinals and the quarterfinals eliminated.

In addition, the semifinal showdown between South Korea and Japan has been confirmed. Earlier, South Korea, led by head coach Shin Sang-woo, defeated Uzbekistan 6-0 and reached the semifinals.

The semifinal Korea-Japan match, which will be contested for the finals of the tournament, will be held at Stadium Australia in Sydney, Australia, at 6 p.m. on the 18th.

In FIFA rankings, South Korea is 21st and Japan is 8th, showing a wide gap. Korea is fifth in Asia, but Japan is the highest team in Asia.

South Korea is trying to advance to the finals for the second time in a row following the 2022 tournament (second place). Japan was eliminated from the semifinals in the 2022 tournament, but won two consecutive tournaments in 2014 and 2018.

It is the first time in eight months that the women's soccer Korea-Japan match will be held since the 2025 East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) E-1 Football Championship (East Asian Cup) held in Korea in July last year. At that time, it was tied 1-1, and South Korea won the tournament.

The previous record is 4 wins, 12 draws, and 19 losses, far inferior to Korea. The last time it beat Japan was a 2-1 victory at the East Asian Cup in August 2015, and it has been winless (4 draws and 5 losses) in 9 consecutive games since then.

Meanwhile, host Australia and China will clash in the semifinals on the other side. Australia defeated North Korea 2-1 and China defeated Taiwan 2-0.

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*This content was translated by AI.