"In the first half, we rotated the squad to maintain fitness for the quarter-finals. It wasn’t a complete lineup change, but we made some adjustments. In the second half, we made further changes and that improved our performance,” said Lee.

"Even though we had already qualified, our motivation remained high. This match against Japan was crucial as it would determine our next opponents, so the players understood what was at stake and executed their roles well."

Japan head coach Yuzo Funakoshi admitted that their defensive plan didn’t fully pay off. 

"Our plan was to approach the game head-on, and in the second half, we adjusted the tempo and tactics. Despite taking the lead in the first half, Korea Republic showed their quality in the end when they equalised. Of course, we wanted to win, but this is football – mistakes happen,” said Funakoshi.

Japan will Islamic Republic of Iran in the quarter-finals, with the Central Asian side having topped Group C with a perfect three wins.