Defeat in the Korea-Japan match? Even Lee Young-pyo, who couldn't even imagine when he was a child, can't help but admit it as a world-class powerhouse in Japan

Aug 01, 2025

Defeat in the Korea-Japan match? Even Lee Young-pyo, who couldn't even imagine when he was a child, can't help but admit it as a world-class powerhouse in Japan
Sportschosun DB



Lee Young-pyo evaluated that his clear goals and steady progress made Japan what it is now.

Japan's Soccer Digest Web released an interview with Lee Young-pyo, one of the best legends in Korea, on the 1st. In this interview, Lee Young-pyo honestly talked about the Korea-Japan war as an active player and how he evaluates Korea and Japan today.

Asked to evaluate the Japanese national team, Lee Young-pyo said, `I've been watching the Korea-Japan match since I was a student, and I think the Japanese national team has grown significantly. When I was in elementary school, middle school, and high school, I couldn't imagine Korea losing to Japan. Even after starting his career, he has won against Japan, and I didn't think he would lose. However, over the past 30 years, Japanese soccer has grown rapidly and has continued to develop"He mentioned that Japan in the past and Japan in the present are very different."




Defeat in the Korea-Japan match? Even Lee Young-pyo, who couldn't even imagine when he was a child, can't help but admit it as a world-class powerhouse in Japan
Sportschosun DB
Lee Young-pyo recalled that Japan, which was weak against Korea, began to change in the mid-1990s. He looked back, "'Since the mid-90s, Japan has been under the impression that it has become quite a threat to Korea.'

What kind of team will Japan be in 2025 from Lee Young-pyo's perspective. "Japan has seen remarkable sustained growth over the past 30 years. Japan is not only a strong rival for South Korea, but it has now reached a level where it is considered a fairly strong team not only in Asia but also in the world," he praised the pace of Japanese soccer's development.

In fact, Japan is showing tremendous speed of development through a project centered on the Japan Football Association with the goal of winning the 2050 World Cup. The gap with Korean soccer is also widening. "The current Japanese national team is much stronger than in the past and will continue to be stronger. Especially now, quite a few Japanese players are active in Europe, many of whom have successful playing careers. The number of players entering Europe itself is not important, but it is very important how good they are playing for and how successful they are playing in Europe. In the case of Japan, it is also evident in the figures, and analyzed that Japan is developing both quantitatively and qualitatively.




Defeat in the Korea-Japan match? Even Lee Young-pyo, who couldn't even imagine when he was a child, can't help but admit it as a world-class powerhouse in Japan
Sportschosun DB
Lee Young-pyo went on to say, "It is a piece of data that proves how much Japanese players have improved, how much they have improved, and how much they are recognized in European soccer, in world soccer. In addition, many players have entered Europe and play for good clubs, and individual play itself is a factor that makes the Japanese national team stronger. So Japan was stronger 20 years ago than 30 years ago, 10 years ago was stronger than 20 years ago, and the current Japanese national team is stronger than 10 years ago. That's how many good players are coming out."

Korea is also being stimulated by Japan's development. Lee Young-pyo also said, `Of course, I was greatly stimulated by watching Korea and Japan grow like that. Japan's growth, both for individual players and for Korean soccer as a whole, was a great motivation. At the same time, it made me feel a sense of crisis and provided an opportunity for growth," he added.






This article was translated by Naver AI translator.