Lee Young-jun Scores Twice as Korea Defeats China 2-0 in Group B Match

Courtesy of Korea Football Association

In the Olympic men's football qualifying tournament held in Qatar, Korea clinched their second consecutive win by defeating China 2-0 at the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Asian Cup in Doha on Friday.

Lee Young-jun, forward for Korea, scored both goals for his team, finding the net in each half of the Group B match. His brace follows his previous goal in Korea's 1-0 victory over the United Arab Emirates (UAE) earlier in the tournament. 

▲ Lee Young-jun of Korea celebrates after scoring a goal against China during the teams' Group B match at the Asian Football Confederation U-23 Asian Cup at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha / Courtesy of Korea Football Association

This tournament serves as the AFC qualifying event for the Paris Olympics, with the top three nations from the 16-team competition securing berths in France. The fourth-place team will face an intercontinental playoff against Guinea.

With this win, Korea momentarily rose to the top of Group B with six points. Japan, who secured a 1-0 victory against China earlier in the tournament, were set to play the UAE later on Friday.

Should Japan also secure a win, both Korea and Japan will secure the two knockout spots from Group B. The two teams are scheduled to face each other next Monday to determine the group's top seed.

▲ Kim Min-woo of Korea(right) dribbles past Behram Abduweli of China during the teams' Group B match at the Asian Football Confederation U-23 Asian Cup at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha / Courtesy of Korea Football AssociationKorea has maintained a consistent presence in the Olympic men's football tournament since 1988.

Throughout the match, China had several opportunities, including attempts by forward Behram Abduweli and midfielder Tao Qianglong. However, Korea's goalkeeper Kim Jeong-hoon made critical saves to maintain a clean sheet.

Korea broke the deadlock in the 34th minute when Lee Young-jun capitalized on a through ball from Kang Sang-yoon. Eom Ji-sung and Lee Tae-seok also contributed to Korea's offensive efforts, with Lee Young-jun ultimately sealing the victory with his second goal.

Despite China's efforts to rally in the second half, Korea's defense remained resilient, securing their two-goal advantage until the final whistle.

Sayart

Blue YIM, yimyoungseo1010@naver.com