Son’s Asian Games hopes rocked by minnows Malaysia; North Korea hammer Tajikistan
SOREANG: Son Heung-min’s hopes of avoiding military service by securing Asian Games gold suffered a blow Friday as South Korea were stunned 2-1 by minnows Malaysia.
Also through to the Round of 16 were Palestine, who confirmed their place despite a 1-1 draw with Hong Kong in Group A while Islamic Republic of Iran and Saudi Arabia are just a point away after scoring wins in Group F.
The Tottenham Hotspur forward came off the bench just before the hour-mark but couldn’t help the defending champions overturn a two-goal deficit, after Safawi Rasid’s first-half double for 171stranked Malaysia.
Son is skipping Premier League action for the regional Olympics, where victory would mean an exemption from South Korea’s 21 months of military service.
Son, 26, was released by Spurs for the tournament, which represents his final chance to avoid nearly two years in military barracks -- a serious setback to his career.
South Korea, who thrashed Bahrain 6-0 in their opening match, dominated possession in the second half, particularly after Son’s introduction, but were unable to claw their way back.
Japan-based striker Hwang Ui-jo, who is also facing his final chance to avoid military service, pulled one goal back for the Koreans late on.
And Son had a golden chance to equalise with a free-kick just outside the box in the last minute, but he placed it inches wide of the post.
Malaysia, 114 places lower than their opponents in the FIFA rankings, were happy to sit deep and play on the break, and frustrated the South Koreans further with frequent stoppages. Malaysia’s Rasid opened the scoring after just five minutes and he cannoned his second in off the post in first-half injury time.
However, South Korea’s hopes remain very much alive as they now require a draw against Kyrgyzstan in their final group clash to reach the knockout stages.
THUMPING WIN
North Korea made a sensational start to their 2018 Asian Games Indonesia women’s football title defence, trouncing Tajikistan 16-0 in their opening Group B fixture at Bumi Siriwijaya Stadium on Friday.
Highly rated 18-year-old striker Sung Hyang-sim lived up to her pre-tournament billing with two goals in the opening six minutes and four in the first half, while Kim Yun-mi netted a hat-trick as the World No 10 notched their biggest ever win at the Games.
The Koreans scored eight goals in each half, with Rim Se-ok, Yu Jong-im and substitute Kim Unhwa all scoring twice, while Kim Phyong Hwa, Ri Hae-yon and captain Kim Nam-ui found the net once each.
In a humbling 90 minutes for Kanoat Latipov’s Tajikistan side, North Korea had over 50 shots at goal and exerted complete domination over their Central Asian opponents.
Palestine sealed a place in the Round of 16 after accumulating eight points from four matches but whether they finish as Group A winners will only be decided on Monday, when the other four teams complete their final round of matches.
Bahrain and Kyrgyzstan are staring at elimination after playing to a 2-2 at the Jalak Harupat Stadium.
Both suffered opening day defeats to Korea Republic and Malaysia respectively and needed to win to keep their hopes alive.