In the final round of the group stage of the 2024 U17 Women's Asian Cup in Indonesia, the South Korean women's football team drew 1-1 with the Philippines with the help of a controversial goal, and finally narrowly advanced to the knockout stage as only the second in the group. This campaign also witnessed the emergence of all the top four teams in this Asian Cup.
The process of the game
In the first half, the two teams were in a stalemate, and it was difficult to distinguish between them. Both sides showed a tenacious fighting spirit in defence, with possession in the midfield area changing hands repeatedly. South Korea had a slight dominance on the ball but failed to create a dangerous chance in attack. The Philippines opted more for a quick counter-attack when the defenders were withdrawn, but they failed to really threaten the South Korean team's goal.
South Korea opened the scoring in the second half with a controversial goal from Fan Ye-joo. In the 62nd minute, the South Korean team organized an attack in the front, Fan Yizhu suddenly fell to the ground in the penalty area, and the referee awarded a penalty to the South Korean team after VAR intervened. Fan Yizhu personally took the penalty and rewrote the score to 1-0. The decision sparked a backlash from the Filipino team, who believed that Fan had not been fouled in the box and had fallen on her own.
The Philippines fought back with all their might to finally equalise in the final moments. In the 87th minute, the Philippine team played a wonderful match on the right side of the front, and finally Alcaran shoveled the goal to equalize the score at 1-1. The two sides drew 1-1, and South Korea qualified second in the group by only goal difference.
The Final Four are born
The top four of this Asian Cup are: South Korea, China, Japan and North Korea. Among them, the North Korean team won all the group stages and was in excellent form. The Chinese team and the Japanese team are both traditional strong teams, and their strength should not be underestimated. The semi-finals are exciting, and the final stage will be even more intense.
The Chinese team defeated Australia and Thailand in the group stage, and finally advanced as the group leader. In the 3-0 win over Australia, the Chinese team opened the door to victory with goals from Chen Rui, Li Yuhan and Cheng Haitang. Later, in the match with Thailand, although only Liu Jingwen scored a goal, the Chinese team's defense was very solid, and finally won 1-0.
Japan, on the other hand, finished second in the group stage by beating Thailand and Australia. Japan has always been a traditional powerhouse in Asian women's football, a team that is good at possession and quick counter-attacks, and is full of firepower in attack.
North Korea have won all three of their group games, scoring a whopping 14 goals and the goalkeeper has not conceded a single goal. This team has won many good results in the Asian Youth Championship, and its strength should not be underestimated.
Disputed Penalties
South Korea's leading goal was controversial and the decision raised questions. In the 62nd minute, the referee awarded a penalty to South Korea on the advice of VAR, but replays showed that Fan Ye-joo did not receive any fouls in the penalty area and fell down on her own. The decision was undoubtedly controversial.
The referee did not explain the controversial decision. As a general rule, if VAR is unable to provide conclusive evidence, the referee's original decision should be upheld. However, there are obvious doubts about the decision in this game.
The Filipino team expressed dissatisfaction with the decision, but in the end it was unsuccessful. After the game, both the head coach and captain of the Philippine team expressed strong dissatisfaction with the decision, believing that it directly affected the outcome of the game. However, according to the rules of the tournament, the decision could not be overturned, and in the end the Philippines could only accept a 1-1 draw.
The group stage of this year's U17 Women's Asian Cup ended, and four strong teams broke into the knockout round. South Korea, with the help of a controversial goal, narrowly advanced as group runners-up. The semi-finals are exciting, and the final stage will be even more intense and exciting.