Jung Jae-sang's multi-goal Lee Min-sung won 50 against Macau in the first round of the U23 Asian Cup qualifying round
Sep 03, 2025
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South Korea's under-22 (U-22) national soccer team, led by head coach Lee Min-sung, defeated Macau 5-0 in the first Group J match of the 2026 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Asian Cup qualifying round at Glora Delta Stadium in Shido Arzo, Indonesia on the 3rd (Korea time). The national team got off to a good start with a big win from the first game. In this preliminary round, the first-place team in the group will go straight to the finals, and the top four teams among the second-place teams will qualify for the finals. The finals will be held in Saudi Arabia in January 2026.
This is the first test of the Lee Min-sung, which departed in earnest starting with a friendly match against Australia in June. Coach Lee, who took the helm in May, played his first official tournament through this preliminary round. Coach Lee will lead the national team to the U-23 Asian Cup, the 2026 Nagoya and Aichi Asian Games, and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
There were many variables from the beginning. Due to league schedule problems, the national team was forced to be doubled. On August 31, 14 people left first, and nine people joined on the 1st. Of course, normal training was impossible. Since there is no direct flight, it takes about 12 hours to get to Surabaya, where the game is played. As the latecomers arrive on the evening of the 1st, there is only one day to train as a whole.
To make matters worse, I couldn't even set the best power. In consideration of the U-20 World Cup, European strikers such as Yang Min-hyuk (Portsmouth), Yoon Do-young (Excelcior) and Park Seung-soo (Newcastle) were not selected, and Kang Sang-yoon (Jeonbuk) was eliminated due to injury.
Coach Lee said, `I am excited as I am going to play my first official tournament since I took the helm of the national team. I will work well with the players and come back with a good result. "I didn't have much time to match my feet, so I selected players with good condition to play the tactics well. The goal is to advance to the finals with three wins."
Coach Lee appointed Moon Hyun-ho, Choi Woo-jin, Choi Seok-hyun, Lee Hyun-yong, Hwang Do-yoon, Park Seung-ho, Lee Seung-won, Kang Sung-jin, Jung Kang-min, Jeong Jae-sang, and Park Jun-seo as the best 11. South Korea scored the first goal in the early hours. In the 14th minute of the first half, Jung Jae-sang, who was digging into the back space of the defense in a counterattack, finished with a left-footed shot. Lee Min-sung-ho, who scored the first goal, scored an additional goal in extra time. Park Seung-ho, who received Hwang Do-yoon's heel pass, shook the net with a right foot shot.
The scoring race continued in the second half. In the third minute of the second half, Jung Jae-sang scored multiple goals with a penalty kick. In the 12th minute, Jung Jae-sang's cutback was scored by Kang Sung-jin, and in the 43rd minute, Seo Jae-min's mid-range shot, which was replaced, ended the great victory. Korea will clash with Laos on the 6th and Indonesia on the 9th.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
