AFC U20 Asian Cup
Head coach Lee Chang-won admitted that nerves got to his inexperienced players after they almost let slip a 2-0 advantage, with Syria forcing them on the back foot for much of the second half.
Fitness issues were another concern for Lee with Son Seung-min, Ha Jeong-woo and Baek Ming-gyu taken off before the hour mark.
#AFCU20 | Group D : Korea Republic 2 - 1 Syria
“The players are still young so they were a little bit nervous,” said Lee. “Since this is the first game, it was something that we also wanted to look at (how they will react) so that we can prepare for the future matches.
“We do not have a best XI in the team, just that some players had some physical issues, so we were a little bit more careful and hence that’s why we made those changes in the second half.”
Sung Shin had given Korea Republic an early lead before a well-worked team goal via Baek doubled their advantage, only for a drop in performance allowing Syria to pull one back through Asland Abdi’s strike in the 60th minute.
Syria then went in search of the equaliser but were let down by poor decision making in the final third with head coach Mohamad Kwid regretting that his players weren’t able to capitalise on them having the momentum in the game.
“In the first half, the Korean team were moving the ball, making good moves, and exploiting spaces in a way we did not expect,” said Kwid.
“In the second half, we played better, and did not give the Korean team any chance to shoot. We made good moves and had several chances, and we were able to score a goal, and we could have at least drawn, but this is football.”
Sunday’s fixtures see Korea Republic take on Thailand while Syria will play Japan.
