By Rohith Nair
AL WAKRAH, Qatar (Reuters) – South Korea advanced to the semi-finals of the Asian Cup with a 2-1 comeback win over Australia in extra time at Al Janoub Stadium on Friday after Son Heung-min scored the winner with a sublime free kick.
Australia had beaten South Korea by the same scoreline in extra time in the 2015 final to lift their first Asian Cup, but this time it was the east Asian team who prevailed after netting yet another goal in stoppage time to force extra time.
Australia had taken the lead just before halftime when they cleverly switched flanks with neat passes in the box before Nathaniel Atkinson’s cross found Craig Goodwin, who had time to set himself up for a volley into the bottom corner.
But South Korea had dominated possession and with time running out, Son won a penalty in stoppage time which was put away into the top corner by Hwang Hee-chan — their fourth goal after the 90th minute at the tournament.
With South Korea going to extra time for a second straight game after they beat Saudi Arabia on penalties, Hwang won a free kick on the edge of the box and Son stepped up to guide his effort past the wall, beating Mathew Ryan in goal.
Australia’s attempts to fight back suffered a blow when Aiden O’Neill was sent off after a VAR review for a foul on Hwang, reducing Graham Arnold’s side to 10 men for the second half of extra time where they could not find a second goal.
South Korea play Jordan on Tuesday in the first semi-final after the Middle Eastern side beat Tajikistan 1-0 earlier on Friday.
(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Al Wakrah, Qatar; Editing by Christian Radnedge)
Disclaimer: This report is auto generated from the Reuters news service. ThePrint holds no responsibilty for its content.