Korea can hold its head up high

By John Duerden

SYDNEY ― The Asian Cup final ended with disappointment for South Korea and a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Australia in Sydney on Saturday night. It will not be much consolation to the players that they were involved in an epic and thrilling contest but in the end, one team has to lose. It could have been the Socceroos but instead it was the Taeguk Warriors.

But there was much more to this story. Massimo Luonga scored a beautiful goal just before the half-time break for the host. Korea huffed and puffed in the second half but just could not get the breakthrough it needed. Yet in the 91st minute Son Heung-min finally found a little, not much, space in the area and pushed the ball past Mat Ryan to silence the majority of the 76,000 fans at Sydney Stadium.

Extra-time was tough for both teams physically and mentally and it was always going to take a moment of magic or a defensive mistake to make the difference. Step forward Kim Jin-su. Based in the Bundesliga, the left-back had enjoyed an excellent tournament and had perhaps been the best in his position. After 105 minutes however, he made two mistakes. First he failed to clear when he had the chance and then allowed a prone Tomi Juric to get up and walk into the area to set up the decisive goal from James Troisi.

Korea had come back once but a second time was beyond this team. Increasingly desperate, driven on by the fantastic Cha Du-ri, playing the last game for his country, this time there was no way through. When the final whistle came it was Australia celebrating while the Koreans sank down to their knees in despair and exhaustion.

When the energy levels return, the players, fans and media will find plenty to be happy about. This is a team that came back from the World Cup in June to anger and abuse, There's a new coach and some new players and this is a stage of transition for this team and reaching the final for the first time since 1988 is a creditable achievement.

Not conceding a goal until the 44th minutes of the sixth game is hugely encouraging even if there is still a question mark over the team's creativity and composure in attack though the injured Koo Ja-cheol and Lee Chung-yong could have made difference had they been fit. We will never know.

Captain Ki Sung-yueng has perhaps emerged as the best midfielder in Asia and still has his best years ahead of him. Son Heung-min has proved that he is the most exciting attacker that the continent possesses. Kim Jin-su has been excellent at left-back, Kim Jin-hyun looks to have solved the goalkeeping question while Kwak Tae-hwi and Kim Young-gwon have been solid in the center of defense.

Later this year, qualification for the 2018 World Cup starts. With coach Uli Stielike settling more into his role and with young players still improving, there is no reason why South Korea can't continue to improve.

It will take some time for this to be appreciated. At the moment, there is pain after defeat in the final but Korea can hold its head up high after this month in Australia.

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