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| Players of South Korea celebrate their team's 1-0 victory over Nigeria at the end of FIFA U-20 World Cup quarterfinal match at the Madre de Ciudades stadium in Santiago del Estero, Argentina, Sunday. / AP-Yonhap |
By John Duerden
It is hard to know what the headline should be when it comes to Korean soccer this week. On Sunday, the national team made it to the semi-final of the 2023 FIFA Under-20 World Cup with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Nigeria in Argentina. It is not only the best performance from an Asian team at the tournament but the young Taeguk Warriors are to take on Italy on Thursday and, if they win, it will take them into the final of a second successive tournament.
Against Nigeria, 90 minutes ended goalless but five minutes into extra-time, another well-worked set-piece routine saw Choi Seok-hyun head home a corner. It turned out to be the only goal in a game, where there were few opportunities. Nigeria joins Ecuador and France as the teams that have been defeated by Kim Eun-jung's men. Italy will be a difficult opponent and has eliminated England and Colombia in the knockout stage but after reaching the final back in 2019.
The win over Nigeria came shortly after Kim Min-jae was named the best defender in Italy this season, the first Asian to receive such an accolade. The center-back has played a major role in Napoli winning their first championship in over 30 years. Kim is now one of the hottest properties in European soccer and is on the shopping list of a number of clubs in the English Premier League.
According to reports in the Italian media, Napoli are resigned to losing the 26-year-old this summer. It seems that Manchester United are the frontrunner for the player's signature. It is going to be an interesting few weeks and it could be that a move to one of the biggest clubs in the world will take Kim Min-jae's global reputation to a new level especially if he can help take the Red Devils back to the top of the English and European game.
Fans in Italy will be sorry to see the back of the defender. Former Napoli star Rudi Krol has been impressed with the way Kim has improved since joining the club last July and working with a top-class coach. "He has improved a lot with the day-after-day work of a master like (Luciano) Spalletti," said Krol. "I must say the next defender who comes to Naples won't be able to understand Italian football as quickly as the Korean."
There was also a little bit of hope and excitement injected into the top of the K League standings on Sunday. Ulsan Horangi had been running away with win after win. Then the champion lost just its second game of the season so far at the hands of old rival and enemy Jeonbuk Motors. Had Ulsan defeated Jeonbuk, Ulsan would have moved 13 points clear but Jeonbuk did the league a favor. The gap above Jeju is still a formidable ten points but with over half of the campaign still remaining, there is a chance that there will be a genuine title race in the coming weeks and months.
Before then, however, there is Thursday's semi-final with Italy.
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