AFC U23 Asian Cup - Baek expects a more potent Korea Republic against Japan

Jeddah: Baek Ga-on wants Korea Republic to be sharper when they meet Japan in the semi-finals of the AFC U23 Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2026™ on Tuesday.

The forward produced a moment of magic to score the opening goal in the East Asian side’s 2-1 win against Australia in Saturday’s quarter-final, with Shin Min-ha netting the winner in the 89th minute after Australia had drawn level.

“I do feel we should have taken advantage of the chances we had and scored more goals, which is a bit disappointing,” said Baek, who plays for K League 2 side Busan IPark.

“The players handled the goal we conceded reasonably well but I hope that in the next match, we can be even more perfect and secure a stronger win.”

Baek revealed that it was the support and words of encouragement from the senior players that kept the team motivated after Australia equalised.

“It was definitely a tough moment when we conceded the goal. But when the players regrouped, the senior players encouraged us to keep going. That made us feel we could turn the game around and we did. It was a really special and rewarding moment.

“Everyone is enjoying the victory. There’s a lot of positive feedback and encouragement and I think the team feels they’ve made up for the previous game (a 2-0 defeat to Uzbekistan in the group stage). The atmosphere is very happy, and everyone is in high spirits for the semi-final.”

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