The Ultimate Rivalry: Korea vs Japan in the Asian Cup Final
The South Korean national team secured a 4-2 victory over Qatar, powered by Ryu Ha-neul’s brace and two assists.
Ryu Ha-neul added two more goals to reach a career total of six in the tournament, tying him for the top scorer alongside Qatar’s Melissa. He also recorded two assists, claiming the assist lead.
The semi-final opponent is the host nation, the United Arab Emirates.
Having defeated defending champions Australia to reach the semifinals, the United Arab Emirates now faces South Korea. The key for the Koreans will be to stay focused and ignore the roaring home crowd fueled by the host nation’s home advantage.
South Korea defeated the host nation, the United Arab Emirates, and advanced to the final.
In the 24th minute of the second half, Ryu Ha-neul’s opening goal became the decisive strike, sending South Korea through to the final against the United Arab Emirates. Meanwhile, the final opponent was determined by the results of the semifinals between Iran and Japan.
Kang Yeon-ji’s contract with Manchester United is moving at lightning speed?
Meanwhile, rumors were swirling that South Korea’s starting center-back, Kang Yeon-ji, was on the verge of joining Manchester United (hereinafter Man U). Agents from both sides had been seen coming and going at the national team’s training camp.
One source revealed that Diena, the national team manager, had recommended Kang Yeon-ji to Manchester United, who were desperately searching for a defender.
The final will be the historic Korea-Japan rivalry!
Japan advanced to the final by defeating Iran, turning this Asian Cup final into a Korea-Japan clash. This will be the first time the Asian Cup final has featured a Korea-Japan matchup. Japan holds four Asian Cup titles, while South Korea has two.
Players Japan must watch out for include Newcastle’s starting center-back Shizuka Hayashi (30) and Mori Ayaka (17), who has locked down the starting spot at Bayer Leverkusen this season.
Particularly, Shizuka Hayashi, who began her career in Yokohama in 2007, moved through Southampton and Liverpool before settling as Newcastle’s first-choice defender, has…
Who will claim the glory of victory in this historic Korea-Japan final?
Evening before the final. Kang Yeon-ji’s expression looked quite pleased, as if the transfer to Manchester United had already been confirmed.
Personally, I had some negative preconceptions about Man U, but this world was different from ours, and the weight of the Man U name still carried weight. So I sincerely congratulated Kang Yeon-ji on her move.
Who knows if we’d face each other in the Champions League, but either way, a Korean player joining Man U was something worth celebrating.
Still, even in such a big transfer, Kang Yeon-ji didn’t seem particularly over the moon. After all, our final opponent was Japan.
‘Japan….’
While preparing for the final, the core of Japan’s squad that had been drilled into my ears was Shizuka, Japan’s captain and the heart of their defense. Whether we won or lost this match hinged on whether we could break through Shizuka’s defense.
Shizuka was currently playing as a defender for Newcastle. She had moved to Southampton in her early twenties, performed well in the Championship, then joined Liverpool the following year. After rotating at Liverpool for about three years, she transferred to Newcastle and had been playing there ever since.
At the time, Liverpool’s status wasn’t what it is now—they were a mid-to-lower table club—but having stood out in England since she was young, Shizuka’s reputation in Japan was absolute. Even when Newcastle was relegated, she refused to leave and immediately helped them get promoted back to the Premier League, earning her near-legend status within the club.
And as her career showed, her skill level was also quite high.
Let me explain Shizuka’s strengths. Her superior physique was one. At 189 cm—unusually tall for a Japanese player—and possessing a speed that rivaled the fastest defenders in the EPL, it was her greatest asset.
Her defensive ability was also solid. However, she had some issues with build-up and ball retention, so she didn’t quite fit the modern trend where defenders needed to be able to pass. Still, Japan had other players who could help with build-up, so it didn’t stand out much in the national team.
In addition, the squad was full of players who had played in Europe, proving that reaching the round of 16 at the last World Cup in Russia wasn’t just luck.
Among all those European-based players, the one who stuck in my memory was Mori Ayaka.
I had faced Ayaka many times in the youth national team. Now that she had debuted for the senior team and was performing as a key attacking piece, I felt a strange sense of nostalgia.
…And I felt a bit fortunate.
Ayaka was Japan’s attacking core and an attacking midfielder. To play her, Japan had no choice but to use a 4-2-3-1 formation.
In other words, Japan had no room to deploy a defensive midfielder to man-mark me.
Probably, as the coaches had said, the match would likely be 4-2-3-1 vs 4-2-3-1, and I didn’t have confidence in winning that matchup.
Honestly, considering the stage of the Korea-Japan rivalry, the Asian Cup final, and Japan’s squad packed with European stars, if they came out with a counter-attack, it would be a blessing for us.
“Ha-neul, how’s your condition?”
While I was thinking about tomorrow’s match in the lounge, my mother approached me. During my time with the national team, my mother had rarely come to me first, as if to prevent rumors from spreading. But given that tomorrow’s match was a Korea-Japan final, she was probably a bit nervous.
Actually, we had faced Japan in an Asian Cup final even in the youth national team, but my mother had never shown this side of herself. The adult stage was indeed different.
“Condition? Of course it’s good.”
To reassure my mother, I smiled brightly and said it was fine.
“Really? That’s good. Actually, I’ve been worried because we haven’t had a day off since the quarterfinals and have been playing every two or three days.”
“Come on, I’m fine too.”
Well, as my mother said, I was a bit tired, but this was the weight a pro had to endure. If I got this rattled, I shouldn’t have started playing soccer in the first place. Moreover, complaining about fatigue against Japan—neither France, Spain, Brazil, nor top teams like Real Madrid or Bayern Munich—was absurd.
“Good. If anything feels off tomorrow, tell me right away. Tomorrow’s match will be tougher than usual.”
My mother was really… too worried.
Actually, my mother’s concern for my stamina wasn’t just as a mother; it was also as a coach.
Up until now, the national team had never entrusted me with a defensive role, but tomorrow, I would have one specific defensive task.
It was to put pressure on Shizuka, who wasn’t great at build-up. Shizuka was the best defender in Asia, but she was weak against strong pressure in build-up situations. We had decided to exploit that weakness.
And since the person who suggested that tactic wasn’t Diena but my mother, I was even more worried.
“Mom, I defend in Barcelona too. You know, Total Soccer.”
“I’m always watching your games, so don’t worry. Even if you feel like you can’t handle the pressure, stop. First priority is to keep your attacking stamina.”
“……Still, I won’t be able to walk around like that.”
At my words, my mother smiled faintly and ruffled my hair. Up until now, my mother had always spoken to me in a stiff tone during our time together on the national team. But even in the lounge where everyone else was relaxed, she was acting this way, so it seemed her emotions were rising ahead of the final.
“Alright, work hard and come back with the championship.”
“…I’m going to Spain though?”
“That was a joke.”
Exactly.
My mother gave me a light smack on the forehead as a way to lighten the mood. But the affection in that finger made it not hurt at all.
‘Why was I like that in the past? This person who cares for me so much….’
And every time I felt my mother’s love, I felt a slight regret for having closed the door on myself when I was still young.
I had judged this wonderful person as I wished and failed to feel the happiness that a parent should naturally feel, only causing worry.
Well, if I were to make excuses for my younger self, I hadn’t been in my right mind right after I died, and the world I was born into was different from the one I knew, so I was confused. In my previous life, my relationship with my parents wasn’t great, so I had misunderstood. But no matter how I tried to excuse it, the me of that time was truly a terrible child.
The only way to repay those parents was to continue filial piety from now on.
And the best way to repay my mother right now was to defeat Japan in the Asian Cup final and win the championship.
“Mom.”
“Hm?”
“I’ll definitely win.”
“Yes. The biggest regret of my playing days was not winning the Asian Cup. Ha-neul, you have to seize opportunities when they come. Missing one is when you know you won’t get another chance—winning is that kind of thing.”
“Yes… Please watch over me.”
For my mother, I was ready to win the championship.