The 2024 U23 Asian Cup is destined to go down in the history of Asian football. This quadrennial top-level competition has witnessed the fall of some traditional powerhouses, but also ushered in the rise of new powers. In the tempering of this battle of the kings, the entire Asian football map has undergone dramatic changes.
Waterloo of the South Korean team
As the traditional hegemon of Asian football, South Korea has been the favorite to win the U23 Asian Cup. There are many budding stars in their team, such as Li Yongjun, Zhang Yuanming and other new generation of iron guards, plus the experienced Park Joo-bong gatekeeper, it can indeed be regarded as a team with outstanding comprehensive strength.
In the group stage, it is not surprising that the South Korean team did take the lead, winning all three games and breaking into the quarterfinals. The real test, though, is in the knockout stages. Once you enter the life-and-death battle with full firepower, the psychological quality and tactical execution of the players will be greatly tested.
In the quarterfinals, the South Korean team encountered the stubborn resistance of Indonesia's "dark horse". The Indonesian team, which made its debut in the Asian Cup, dragged South Korea, which had reached its peak, into a penalty shootout with the excellent performance of a group of Chinese rising stars. In the end, the sinking and floating ball of the penalty shootout made the South Korean team unrecoverable and died on the battlefield.
In this way, the South Korean team's dream of winning the Olympic championship for 10 consecutive years came to an abrupt end, and they will not be able to participate in the Olympics, failing to extend the record of 10 consecutive Olympic Games for Asian teams. For this veteran powerhouse in Asian football, in addition to infinite regrets, it may be more of a slap in the face, reminding them not to be complacent.
Indonesia's dark horse charge
The outstanding performance of the Indonesian team is the biggest dark horse in this Asian Cup. As a team of Southeast Asia's "skinny monkeys", it is already unexpected that they can reach the semi-finals, let alone eliminate the veteran South Korea.
The Indonesian team's excellence is no accident, and they have fundamentally changed the composition of the team. Through the large-scale introduction of overseas Chinese players, the strength of the Indonesian team has been fundamentally transformed and improved. Naturalized players such as Rafael Strujk and Ivan Espinosa contributed the vast majority of the goals.
This kind of "spending" conquest has made the Indonesian team quite controversial. But in terms of results, there is no doubt that the Indonesian Football Association's big effort is worth it. They have not only made their mark in this Asian Cup, but also laid out a smooth path for their ambitions to continue to grow in the future.
Japan's counterattack breakthrough
In the semi-finals of the Asian Cup, the Japanese team's path to qualification was also quite tortuous. In the quarterfinals, they encountered Qatar's stubborn resistance and once fell into passivity. Although Japan opened the scoring, they were quickly attacked by their opponents and fell behind 1-2 in the first half.
The turning point came in the second half, when Japan launched a general attack to eventually equalize the score. The two sides fought until extra time, and it was Japan who relied on excellent physical fitness and tenacious fighting spirit to finally gain the upper hand, scoring two goals in extra time to reach the semi-finals with an aggregate score of 4-2.
This process may be a bit tortuous, but it just shows the psychological quality of the Japanese team. At the critical moment, they were not crushed by the opponent's tenacious struggle, but gritted their teeth and fought to the end, and finally fought bloodily to defeat Qatar.
China's Olympic Games stopped in the group stage
For Chinese fans, this Asian Cup is indeed a bit regrettable. Although the Chinese Olympic Games stopped in the group stage, their third place in the group, only losing to South Korea and Uzbekistan, is indeed the best record in history.
Although they failed to break through, the fighting spirit of the National Olympic team members on the green field made all fans see the hope for the future of Chinese football. Chen Zhuolin, Tan Lipeng and other young generals have outstanding performances. As long as they follow the current route, they will definitely become the backbone of Chinese football.
In terms of the current state of Chinese football, perhaps this is a great improvement. Because in order to truly embark on the road to rise, the first thing Chinese football needs to do is to cure the stubborn disease and get out of its own trough. With these vigorous young forces paving the way, the future will be the spring of Chinese football.
A new era for Asian football
Looking at the situation of this year's U23 Asian Cup, the biggest revelation is that the Asian football map is undergoing profound changes.
Former powerhouses such as South Korea are in decline, but the rise of new powers has also allowed the Asian football scene to flourish. Indonesia, as a dark horse in Southeast Asia, has grown by leaps and bounds through the large-scale introduction of naturalized players, and their elimination of South Korea is indeed noteworthy.
Japan and China, by contrast, exemplify their resilience. Japan's tenacious struggle allowed them to finally break through the encirclement; Although China did not qualify, it has shown unprecedented potential for improvement.
Asian football is entering a new era, and the future is promising. As the map of world football becomes more and more multipolar, Asia, the former "fat", will undoubtedly be full of more possibilities. And the many variables of this U23 Asian Cup may be a starting point for this new change.
In short, I hope that Asian football can continue to work hard in the future and bring us more wonderful moments. Let's wait and see!