South Korea defeated Bahrain 3-1 in their first Asia Cup Group E match at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium on Monday, with Paris Saint-Germain’s Lee Kang-in saving the team with two goals in the second half.
When goals from Hwang In-beom and Bahrain’s Abdullah Al-Hashsash tied the score at 1-1, Lee changed his style with two deadly shots and defeated the South Koreans in a small 15,000-capacity arena. Fans screamed with joy.
The stop-start match saw a number of fouls in the first half, and although the challenges were not malicious, South Korea had three players yellow cards in the first 30 minutes, including center back Kim Min-jae.
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South Korean fans had enough to see the referee start booing every time he left his card in his pocket for a Bahrain foul, but when Ali Madan faced a difficult challenge, the pressure paid off. I was disappointed.
Madan was clearly in good form and almost broke the deadlock shortly after with a through ball in front of goal, but his shot into the top corner just missed the target.
However, South Korea then took the lead with a quick movement down the left flank, the ball was crossed into the box and the fan broke through a mass of Bahrain defenders, two of whom collided during the trackback.
Bahrain struggled in the second half and got their deserved reward in the 6th minute when Al Hassash found space in the box and slotted a goal into the bottom corner.
However, South Korea remained undeterred and the East Asian team regained the lead five minutes later when Lee pulled the trigger from outside the box and sent a stunning shot into the net.
PSG’s playmaker doubled his tally as soon as he received the ball from a fan in the box, evading his marker with his quick feet and then showing his panache by curling a shot past the keeper inside the far post. Ta.
With his second goal, he joined Qatar’s Akram Afif and Japan’s Takumi Minamino at the top of the tournament’s scoring list.
South Korea captain Son Heung-min had a chance to score in the second half when he was fired into the penalty area, but his shot went wide and Tottenham Hotspur’s forward was also subsequently registered in the simulation as he tried to win a penalty.