half time

On the final day, back in Suwon, Japan and China both had the chance to wrap up the title with a win, but instead held each other to a goalless draw, a favourable outcome for the hosts. A win against Chinese Taipei, regardless of the score, would put Korea on equal points with both China and Japan, but head-to-head results would give Korea the advantage in a potential tiebreak. A draw or loss would see Japan lift the trophy for the third time in a row.

Advertisement

With a somewhat rotated starting eleven, Korea were dominant in the first half, with almost all of the action taking place in front of Chinese Taipei’s goal. Keeper Wang Yu-ting made some great saves, and the visitors almost caused an upset with a shot on goal late in the first half, but the score remained 0-0 at the break. Moon Eunju and Kang Chaerim were brought on as substitutes at half time, immediately making their presence felt but frustratingly still falling short in the final third. It wasn’t until Korea were awarded a penalty kick that fans finally got something to celebrate, with Ji Soyun stepping up to the spot to smash home her 74th international goal. Jang Selgi doubled the hosts’ lead at 85 minutes with a brilliant touch to direct Kim Hyeri’s cross into the back of the net, and the match ended 2-0, giving Korea’s women their first East Asian Cup title in 20 years.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *