AFC U23 Asian Cup - Vidmar positive despite Australia’s exit

Jeddah: Tony Vidmar admitted Australia were heartbroken after their AFC U23 Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2026™ campaign ended with a 2-1 defeat to Korea Republic in the quarter-finals on Saturday.

Australia reversed a first half deficit through Luka Jovanovic, had chances to go ahead after that but ended up losing after Shin Min-ha struck an 89th minute winner for the East Asian side.

#AFCU23 | Quarter-finals: Australia 1-2 Korea Republic

“It’s a lot to take in to lose like that – it hurts,” said the tactician. “The players were fantastic, the way they went out and played the game. They deserved so much better from it. Especially in the second half, there was only one team on the pitch.

“Maybe we didn’t create as many chances, but we didn’t deserve to lose, that is for sure.”

Vidmar, however, highlighted the positives gained from the tournament - particularly for the younger players.

“The exposure and experience they gained, and the way the players performed throughout this campaign is really encouraging, there’s a lot of positives coming through. The way they approached it was unbelievable. It was a joy to work with all of them.

“Unfortunately, one area that let us down was defending set-pieces. We conceded from them in every game, and that’s something we need to reflect on moving forward.”

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