South Korea’s stunning comeback breaks Saudi Arabian hearts

During the recent 16 Asian Cup match, Saudi Arabia was in control for most of the game, yet South Korea managed to win after a penalty shootout.

So many fans of Saudi Arabia experienced the feeling of getting close to victory but ultimately losing in the end. The team unfortunately couldn't achieve the win they needed during their round-of-16 match against South Korea, which led to them being eliminated from the AFC Asian Cup 2023 tournament. The match took place at the Education City Stadium in Qatar.

South Korea secured a place in the quarterfinals against Australia after a determined performance that led to a 4-2 penalty win. This came after a tied match at 1-1, which compelled them into extra time at the Education City Stadium on Tuesday evening.

During most of regular time, Saudi Arabia was in control of the match and was winning 1-0 until the very end of extra time. However, they couldn't handle the persistent offensive plays from the South Koreans who kept attacking their goal.

Amid the 42,000 onlookers, there were a handful of South Korean supporters who were overjoyed when Cho Gue-Sung netted the leveling goal in the ninth minute of the extra time. Moreover, he skillfully put away his team's third penalty kick, which brought them close to a legendary triumph.

Hwang Hee-chan successfully scored from the penalty spot, causing lively and excited celebrations among the Korean team.

It was expected that the environment and encouragement would be biased towards the Green Falcons. Their fans traveled over Qatar's single land boundary to demonstrate their presence in the country and the sports arena.

Before the game started, they showcased their singing and dancing skills outside the stadium, then filled up the majority of the seats inside once the match began.

The opening half of the game resulted in no goals, however Saudi Arabia displayed their intention to dominate the match over South Korea.

As soon as the game resumed, Abdullah Radif scored a goal for Saudi Arabia, barely giving fans the time to sit back in their seats. The Green Falcons had a lot of energetic supporters before the goal itself, but Radif made them go wild with excitement after he managed to get the ball past the South Korean goalkeeper.

Saudi Arabia kept up their energy, both on and off the field, for the following thirty minutes. However, they eventually grew tired and lacked energy. This is when South Korea's substitutes stepped up and continued to attack the goal of Saudi Arabia with full force.

For the past 10 minutes, the ball didn't move much from the Saudi Arabia half of the field. However, the green-shirted team managed to maintain their slim lead until the end of the game with the help of their enthusiastic fans and their goalkeeper's exceptional saves.

Whenever a Korean player had possession of the ball, the jeers were immensely loud, possibly audible in Riyadh. The supporters of Saudi Arabia, a few of whom had previously bought tickets for the quarterfinal and semifinal games, were not prepared to leave at that moment.

When Cho scored, the fans became quiet and sat down, appearing to understand that their hope for victory had slipped away.

According to an interview with Al Jazeera, Faisal Al Muatiri, a fan from Saudi Arabia, stated that their team frequently takes control of games but ultimately loses due to exhaustion towards the end.

He remarked that seeing this trend more often is something that we're getting used to and the incoming coach must take action to remedy the situation. This statement was in reference to Roberto Mancini.

During the extra time, both teams had opportunities to score, and Saudi Arabia almost secured their victory with an intense goal in the second half of the extension period while their fans watched eagerly. However, it didn't turn out as anticipated.

Fans from South Korea became more certain once the game advanced to penalty kicks.

Darren Lim, a fan from South Korea, expressed his beliefs that the team has both the knowledge and courage necessary for making impressive comebacks. This statement was made following their recent victorious match.

Afterwards, she took a short break to bid farewell to the devastated fans from Saudi Arabia who were leaving. She waved and said "goodnight" to them.

The Green Falcons will regret not being able to maintain their advantage as they return home.

The Taegeuk Warriors have managed to survive and will face the Socceroos this coming Friday.