South Korea’s place in the Round of 16 will be decided in the third leg after they drew with Honduras.
Kim Eun-joong’s South Korea Under-20 football team drew 2-2 with Honduras in their second Group F match of the FIFA U-20 World Cup 2023 at the Estadio Malvinas Argentina in Mendoza, Argentina, at 6:00 a.m. on 26 June. With one win and one draw, South Korea is second in the group with four points.
On the day, South Korea deployed a 4-2-3-1 formation. Lee Young-joon was up front, supported by Kang Sung-jin, Kang Sang-yoon, and Kim Yong-hak. Lee Seung-won and Bae Jun-ho formed the third line, while the back four was made up of Bae Seo-joon, Kim Ji-soo, Choi Seok-hyun, and Park Chang-woo. Kim Jun-hong was in goal.메이저놀이터
South Korea started the game with a goal against Honduras. In the 22nd minute, Daniel Carter was tripped by Choi Seok-hyun. After a video assistant referee (VAR) review, the referee awarded a penalty kick. Ochoa stepped up to take the spot kick and rattled the net.
But there was more good news for South Korea: in the 27th minute, Ochoa hit Bae Seo-Joon. The VAR review cancelled the yellow card and showed a red card. However, South Korea conceded a late goal. Six minutes into the second half, Honduras counter-attacked and Isaac Castillo exchanged one-two passes with Carter before firing a sharp right-footed shot into the corner of the net to give Honduras a 2-0 lead.
South Korea fought back in the second half. In the 13th minute of the second half, a cross from the left side was collected by Lee Young-joon, who then sent it straight to Kim Yong-hak. Kim Yong-hak found the back of the net with a quick shot. Eventually, South Korea equalised. In the 17th minute of the second half, Park Seung-ho headed home a cross from Lee Seung-won on a corner kick. South Korea had a tough time in the second half as Choi Seok-hyun was sent off for accumulating cautions, and the game ended in a 2-2 draw.
The result leaves South Korea in second place with four points and a place in the round of 16, which will be decided in their third group game against Gambia at 6am on the 29th.
Meanwhile, South Korea’s final opponents, the Gambia, are the first to qualify from Group F with two wins. After defeating Honduras 2-1 in the first leg, the Gambia won the second leg against France 2-1 at 3am on the 26th.
France sharpened their attacking edge against the Gambia. They were looking to avenge their 1-2 loss to South Korea in the first leg. Florent Da Silva of France warmed up with a shot on target in the sixth minute of the first half, and Wilson Odover had a powerful effort saved by Gambian goalkeeper Fah Dampa in the 10th minute.
It was France who went on the attack, but mistakes were made at the back. In the 13th minute, France goalkeeper Yann Lienard made a build-up error and Gambia striker Adama Bozangi’s shot deflected off the foot of Tanguy Zoukru for an own goal. The Gambia capitalised on France’s mistake to take the lead.
The Gambian attack continued in the second half. Eight minutes into the second half, France’s Da Silva committed a foul and the Gambia were awarded a penalty. Alagy Senne stepped up to take the spot-kick, but his effort was saved by the goalkeeper. France then pushed forward in the final minutes of the game, with Audaubert levelling the score with a header in the 16th minute.
However, the Gambian’s individual skill saw them through again. In the 23rd minute, Mamang Hunt put the Gambia back in front with a right-footed shot into the back of the net after a direct breakaway. In the end, the Gambia secured a 2-1 victory over France to become the first team from Group F to claim two wins and book their place in the last 16.