North Korea’s men’s soccer team, making its first international appearance in three years and eight months, made a triumphant return. The team used quick, precise passing to break down a stacked defense and earn a convincing victory.
The DPRK got off to a winning start with a 2-0 victory over Chinese Taipei in their men’s football Group F match at the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games on Monday at the Zhejiang Normal University East Stadium in Jinhua, China. Two first-half goals and a clean sheet gave them three points and a green light to advance in the tournament.
North Korea lined up in a back three with goalkeeper Kang Joo-hyuk and defenders Jang Kook-chul, Kim Kyong-seok, and Kim Yoo-sung. The midfield consisted of four players – Kim Kuk-bum, Baek Cheong-sung, Kang Kook-chul and Ri Il-sung – while the attack featured three of the five players classified as attackers in the final roster – Kim Bum-hyok, Ri Jo-guk and Kim Kook-jin – in a lineup that was more focused on offense than defense. Of those, Kang Joo-hyok, Jang Kook-chul, and Kim Kook-beom were the three wildcards over the age of 24.
The DPRK attacked from the start against the underdog Taiwanese team, using a combination of beautiful passing plays and linking up near the box to create pressure.
As North Korea slowly gained possession, they quickly struck first. In the sixth minute of the first half, Ri Zoguk rattled the Taiwanese net with a mid-range shot to take a 1-0 lead.
North Korea was dominating possession near the Taiwanese box and using passing plays to break down Taiwan’s tight defense. Taking advantage of the gap in the Taiwanese defense, Ri Zoguk fired a shot from the front of the arc that hit the body of a Taiwanese defender and deflected into the goal. The Taiwanese goalkeeper was caught in the act and could only look on in disbelief.
North Korea has been absent from major international competitions due to the COVID-19 pandemic since the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Asian Cup group stage in January 2020. After three years and eight months of virtually no live action, the early goal was a welcome boost.
North Korea didn’t stop attacking after the goal. Instead of dropping their defensive line, they tried to keep their offense balanced, and whenever Taiwan saw an opening, they would launch a quick attack to try and score another goal.
North Korea made it 2-0 with a goal in the 12th minute of the first half. Baek Cheong-song, who had been harassing the Taiwanese defense with her speedy dribbling runs since the beginning of the first half, played a crucial role.
After a brilliant dribble that broke down the Taiwanese right flank, Paik delivered a cross into the box. North Korean striker Kim Kuk-jin, who was on a rampage, scored with a perfect cutback and celebrated. From Paik’s connection to Kim’s finish, everything was seamless.
North Korea briefly surrendered the lead to a Taiwanese counterattack at the start of the second half, but the defense, led by captain Jang Kuk Chol, refused to concede a goal. The score remained 2-0 as the North Koreans outplayed the Chinese Taipei in possession, one-on-one battles, and pressure.
The DPRK tried to add to their lead with sharp counterattacks from time to time, but were thwarted by the goalkeeper’s saves and the physical defense of the Taiwanese defenders. In the second half of stoppage time, the DPRK came close to scoring a couple of times, but a picture-perfect save by goalkeeper Kang Joo-hyuk and a ridiculous shot by a Taiwanese striker kept the score at 2-0.
“My players played well and we had a good game,” said North Korean Asian Games soccer coach Kim Yong Nam in an official interview after the first leg. I’m happy as a coach,” he said.
After nearly four years away from international competition, he doesn’t see a problem. He emphasized that the players have been training and playing regularly in North Korea, and he doesn’t think it will affect their performance.
“We haven’t played (internationally) for four years, but we’ve been able to play domestically (in North Korea), and we’ve developed the potential and ability of our players,” he said, adding, “Today, our players did what the team wanted and what (the coach) asked them to do,” he said.
“We were united as a team and all the players played well according to the coach’s intentions,” he added, “I don’t want to say anything about the goal now. I don’t want to say anything about the goal right now.온라인바카라
“In the stadium, the winner is the winner,” he said calmly, adding, “If we have a chance (to play South Korea), we will definitely win.”
North Korea, meanwhile, will have a day off the next day before facing Kyrgyzstan in their second Group F match at the same venue on the evening of Nov. 21. They will then face Indonesia, who are considered the favorites in Group F, on the 23rd.
A total of 23 nations will compete in the men’s soccer competition at the Hangzhou Asian Games, which will be divided into groups A, B, C, D, E and F. The winners of each group will advance to the round of 16. The first and second place finishers in each group will advance directly to the Round of 16, while the top four teams from the top three places in Groups A, B, C, E and F will qualify for the knockout stages, with the exception of Group D, which will feature three nations.
Hong Kong and Uzbekistan, who were drawn in Group D after Afghanistan and Syria withdrew at the last minute, automatically advanced to the Round of 16. With three points from their first game, North Korea will have less pressure on their upcoming matches against Indonesia and Kyrgyzstan.
At the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta-Palembang, North Korea was placed in Group F with Iran, Saudi Arabia and Myanmar and finished second with one win, one draw and four points. At the time, all four countries in Group F had one win, one draw, one loss, and four points, a rare result, and North Korea finished second on the goal difference and aggregate goals rule.
In the round of 16 tournament, they defeated Bangladesh 3-1 to reach the medal round, but were knocked out by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on penalties in the quarterfinals.
North Korean men’s soccer’s best result at an Asian Games is a silver medal at the 2014 Incheon Games.