Osaka:South Korea's under-23 men's football team secured a spot in the gold medal match at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, defeating China 2-1 in the semifinals held at Nagai Stadium. The victory brings them within reach of their fourth consecutive gold medal.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Lee Young-jun and Bae Jun-ho each scored for South Korea. Wang Yudong opened the scoring for China in the 22nd minute, capitalizing on a pass received inside the box. South Korea equalized in the 33rd minute with Lee's header, assisted by a corner from Eom Ji-sung. Bae secured the win with a header in the 82nd minute, once again set up by Eom.
South Korea's head coach, Lee Min-sung, praised his team's resilience after conceding the first goal. Despite injuries sidelining key players Yang Hyun-jun and Lee Gi-hyuk, Lee expressed satisfaction with the team's performance and focus on player health.
South Korea will face the winner of the semifinal match between Japan and Uzbekistan on Saturday at Toyota Stadium. The final match is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. local time.