"I'm sorry," Ji So-yun, tears streaming, repeatedly apologized for the missed penalty kick: "I won't make excuses... I feel a great deal of responsibility." [Suwon]

*This content was translated by AI.

Faced with a decisive missed penalty kick, Ji So-yun (35, SuwonFC Women), a legend of South Korean women's football, finally broke down in tears. Despite dominating the first half at home, Ji So-yun accepted full responsibility for the heartbreaking comeback loss, bowing her head to her teammates and home fans.

SuwonFC Women lost 1-2 to North Korea's Nae-gohyang Women's Football Team in the AFC Women's Champions League (AWCL) semi-final match held at 7 p.m. on the 20th at Suwon Sports Complex.

It was a disappointing defeat. In the 34th minute of the second half, Ji So-yun, who took the penalty kick awarded to Jeon Min-ji, saw her right-footed shot miss the goalpost, preventing the match from going into extra time. As the final whistle blew, Ji So-yun collapsed to the ground in tears, and her teammates comforted her.

Even amidst the hollow result, Ji So-yun first praised her teammates for giving their all until the end. Ji So-yun stated, "Our players performed exceptionally well, which allowed us to reach the semi-finals. Our performance was not significantly inferior. I believe this was the first time we dominated the North Korea team so thoroughly in the first half." She added, "I feel a great deal of responsibility for the missed penalty kick. Many fans came to support us, and I am sorry that the result was not enough."

In a situation where luck simply did not favor them, Ji So-yun calmly admitted her mistake regarding the missed penalty kick without offering any excuses. She said, "I scored all penalty kicks during practice. Because I had confidence, I wanted to take the shot myself. I think I lost the timing while trying to deceive the goalkeeper. There is no room for excuses."

On the day, a civilian joint support group, established with a 300 million won grant from the Ministry of Unification, visited Suwon Sports Complex, creating an abnormal atmosphere where they remained silent for the home team's opening goal but offered one-sided cheers only for North Korea's attacks and goals. However, regarding such external circumstances, Ji So-yun said, "I did not care at all. I heard the SuwonFC Women supporters, Fortress, and the home fans of SuwonFC Women cheering loudly and enthusiastically at the stadium, which gave all the players the strength to play hard," expressing her gratitude.

She also emphasized that she stood her ground firmly against the rough physical battles on the pitch. Ji So-yun explained, "As I stated in the pre-match interview, not backing down and responding strongly from the first half was effective. I think the opposing team players were flustered by our rough counter-attacks and came in even harder and more aggressively."

Finally, when asked about the meaning of the tears she shed after the match, Ji So-yun expressed the regret she had held back until the end. She said, "If I had only succeeded in the penalty kick, we could have gone into extra time and changed the outcome. The players did their best. I felt so sorry at the stadium, and all that came out was just 'I'm sorry.' I am grateful to my teammates."

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*This content was translated by AI.