Paris Saint-Germain winger Lee Kang-in’s sensational second-half double gave South Korea a 3-1 win over Bahrain in their Asian Cup opener on Monday.
Jurgen Klinsmann’s side, one of the favorites to win in Qatar, took the lead in the 38th minute with a goal from Hwang In-beom, but Abdullah Al Hassash’s surprise equalizer six minutes after half-time leveled the score. I caught up.
Bahrain’s joy was short-lived, however, as Lee quickly restored his team’s advantage at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, scoring his second goal with 12 minutes remaining to take all three points in the Group E clash. Secured.
Lee has made a big impact since joining the French champions from La Liga side Mallorca in the summer, and was hailed by PSG manager Luis Enrique as “the perfect player” after scoring his first goal in Ligue 1 in a 3-0 win over Montpellier. ” was praised. November.
And the 22-year-old made his mark at the Asia Cup after just one match in a group that also included Malaysia and Jordan. “Everyone in the locker room and the people back home are waiting for this trophy, which we haven’t won in 64 years,” he said. “We are motivated, but it is still too early to talk about winning the championship.”
South Korea is without Hwang Hee-chan, who has scored 10 goals for Wolves in the Premier League this season, as he was unable to recover from a hip injury.
The team struggled to find a rhythm from the start, conceding three goals in the first 30 minutes, including Bayern Munich defender Kim Min-jae’s goal after hitting the back of Bahrain’s Mohamed Maroon.
South Korea’s first clear chance didn’t come until after the 30th minute, but striker Cho Gu Sung was at the mercy of the goal and could only send a shot over the bar.
Bahrain almost took a shock lead when Ali Madan The shot went straight into the goal, but the winger’s shot went just wide of the target.
Lee Jae-sung then scored with a quick run down the left flank, and Hwang In-beom made his way through a group of Bahraini defenders, but the Red Devils soon had the advantage.
Bahrain struggled in the second half and were duly rewarded when Al Hassash found space in the box and slotted a goal into the bottom corner.
However, Korea quickly found their way to the front after Lee cut in from the right and fired a stunning curling shot from outside the penalty area, past helpless Bahrain goalkeeper Ebrahim Lutfallah and into the net. I’m back.
Moments later, the PSG playmaker received the ball from a fan in the box, looped it inside Bahraini defender Walid Al Khayyam and fired the ball into the bottom corner of the goal, doubling his tally.
Captain Son Heung-min missed a chance to make it 4-1 by firing a shot wide of the box from inside the box with three minutes remaining, but Tottenham Hotspur’s attacker also dived into the box in an attempt to earn a penalty from deep. He was shown a yellow card. In stoppage time.
“As expected, it was a tough match. Bahrain were obviously very well prepared and it was difficult to break through. [them down]Especially when we won 1-0,” Son said.
“Obviously, we have to do better. But I think the most important thing is that we won the game.”
Updated: January 15, 2024, 4:03 p.m.