The excitement of the Asian Cup shifted to the Doha South Stadium on Friday (2) as South Korea and Australia battled it out in the last eight of the tournament. South Korea conceded the first goal, but with Hwang Hee-chan's penalty kick and Son Heung-min's extra-time penalty kick in the net, they won 2-1 after 120 minutes of hard fighting against Australia, who were the first to win the game and faced a ten-man battle at the end of the game.
Australia have made changes to their front line, with Kijiji Geun and Michelle Durkee back in the starting lineup, and Jaechen Ayun and Gunnar McAfee, two of their St. Pauli teammates, in the midfield, with Muffy Ryan still in goal; for South Korea, Cho Kyu-sung is back in the starting lineup to play as the arrowhead, and Hwang Hee-chan, making his debut as a full-time starter, will start the attack side by side with Lee Kang-in.
Early in the match, Korea had a clear advantage in possession, but Australia's counterattacks were sharper. In only 20 minutes, Kiji Geun took a powerful shot inside the penalty area, which was parried out by Korean goalkeeper Cho Hyun-woo. In the 32nd minute, Hwang Hee-chan took a pass from Seol Young-woo and shot into the empty net, but the referee ruled that Seol Young-woo was offside first, and Korea was unlucky to lose points. In the 42nd minute, Australia's cross from the right road was easily shot by Kiji Geun at the far post, giving the Kangaroos a one-goal lead before halftime.
Australia had a chance to extend their lead when the match resumed, but Martyn Paul's two shots from inside the penalty area were valiantly blocked by Cho Hyun-woo. The Koreans settled down and went on the offensive, attacking the Australian penalty area with crosses from both sides. Finally, in stoppage time, the "Kangaroos" defense appeared to have a hole, Son Heung-min won 12 yards for South Korea in the penalty area, and Hwang Hee-chan hit the ball to equalize the score.
