In the first semi-final of the U20 Asian Cup that ended on February 26, Beijing time, the South Korean national youth team drew 0-0 with the Saudi national youth team in 120 minutes. In the subsequent penalty shootout, Saudi Arabia won 3-2 and eliminated South Korea 3-2 on aggregate to advance to the final. South Korea unfortunately failed to reach the semi-finals for the second consecutive time.
In this U20 Asian Cup, the South Korean team beat Japan to qualify as the top of Group D, and eliminated the previous Uzbekistan team in the 1/4 finals penalty shootout and entered the top 4. Saudi Arabia, on the other hand, finished first in Group B and advanced to the semi-finals after beating the host Chinese national youth team in stoppage time in the quarter-finals.
In the first half, the two sides attacked and defended each other. In the 30th minute of the game, Son Seung-min led the ball at two o'clock, and Saudi goalkeeper Hamid Shankiti saved the ball.
One minute later, the Saudi team also threatened. Bassam Hazazi shoots from distance and the ball goes just wide.
Yibian fought again, and in the 53rd minute, the South Korean team missed a must-score. Yin Yiyong made a wonderful pass, and Chen Taihao missed the goal with a single knife.
In the 80th minute, South Korea once again missed a great opportunity. Yoon Yeon-young's precise cross was slightly wide of the goal by Kim Tae-won's header.
In regulation time, the two sides played to a 0-0 draw. In extra time, neither team achieved anything. South Korea played their opponents to penalty shootouts for the second consecutive round. In the penalty shootout, South Korea made 2 of 5 free throws, and Saudi Arabia made 3 of 5 free throws. In the end, Saudi Arabia eliminated South Korea 3-2 and advanced to the final.
In the final, Saudi Arabia will await the winner of the Australian and Japanese teams to compete for the title of this year's U20 Asian Cup.