Jordan in first Asian Cup final

Up against one of the pretournament favourites, Jordan reached the final of the Asian Cup for the first time after stunning South Korea 2-0 on Tuesday.

Yazan Al Naimat and Mousa Tamari struck in the second half at Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium to upset the odds and end coach Jurgen Klinsmann’s hopes of adding another major trophy to his collection.

“I believe the main thing I told my players was not to respect the South Korean team more than you should,” Jordan coach Hussein Ammouta said afterwards. “I think this gave my players that confidence.

“We had nothing to lose.” Jordan will play Iran or defending champions Qatar in the final this weekend. Their semifinal is on today.

South Korea, meanwhile, are left rue a missed opportunity as their wait for a third Asian Cup title goes on.

“The coach is always responsible for how a tournament goes for a team. The goal was to get to the final. We didn’t get to the final,” said Klinsmann, South Korea’s coach who as a player helped West Germany win the World Cup in 1990. “We couldn’t use our chances. We congratulate Jordan. They deserve to be in the final.”

Al Naimat fired Jordan ahead in the 53rd minute by flicking a shot beyond goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo, who had already pulled off a series of saves to keep the score level.

Tamari made it 2-0 in the 66th with a long-range effort that sent fans in the stadium wild and extend his team’s unlikely run in the competition.

Jordan had only advanced to the round of 16 as one of the best thirdplace teams in the group stage and had finished below South Korea in Group E.

But under Moroccan coach Ammouta, they keep coming up with the right answers and dominated the semifinal.

Klinsmann admitted Jordan “won almost every one-on-one battle in the first half hour.”

South Korea needed a stoppage time own goal to secure a draw with Jordan in the group stage and mounted late comebacks in the round of 16 and quarterfinals against Saudi Arabia and Australia, respectively. But a repeat never looked likely on this occasion.

While the two-time champion was aiming to win their first Asian Cup since 1960, Jordan were playing in the semifinal for the first time.

AP Jordan’s Yazan Alnaimat (right) celebrates after scoring his side’s opening goal during the Asian Cup semifinal match between South Korea and Jordan at Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar, yesterday.