Korea set to take on rival Japan with E. Asian football title at stake

Korean players celebrate their 2-0 win over Hong Kong in the teams' second match of the East Asian Football Federation E-1 Football Championship at Yongin Mireu Stadium in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, July 11. Yonhap

Korea and Japan will clash in their latest grudge match this week with the East Asian men's football title on the line.

The final match of the 10th East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) E-1 Football Championship between the old rivals will kick off at 7:24 p.m. Tuesday at Yongin Mireu Stadium in Yongin, some 40 kilometers of Seoul.

The two countries have each won their first two matches of the tournament, with Korea having beaten China 3-0 and then Hong Kong 2-0, and Japan having recorded a 6-1 win over Hong Kong and a 2-0 win over China.

Japan hold the edge in goal difference at +7 to +5, meaning they can win their second consecutive EAFF title with a draw against Korea.

Korea must prevail in order to claim their sixth EAFF title.

Japan finished second to Korea in 2017 and 2019 before getting their revenge on home soil in 2022.

In his team's first two matches, Korea head coach Hong Myung-bo experimented with a back-three formation — a departure from a back-four setup — while using two completely different sets of starting lineups. A dozen players on Hong's 26-man squad have made their international debuts at this tournament.

For the win-or-else match against Japan, Hong will now try to find his optimal lineup based on the two earlier wins.

Korea's five goals have come from five different players, a group that includes the 35-year-old forward Joo Min-kyu and the 21-year-old midfielder Kang Sang-yoon.

They are among 23 players on this squad based in the domestic K League 1 trying to stake their claims on places for next year's FIFA World Cup. With those who ply their trade in Europe and the Middle East not available, Hong is using the EAFF event as a proving ground for K Leaguers — plus three players from Japan's J1 League — that he feels have a chance to crack the World Cup squad.

Many of the new Korean faces are on defense, but they have not been challenged much so far in this tournament. Japan, with eight goals in two matches, will present the first serious test for the largely unproven Korean defense.

Ryo Germain exploded for four goals against Hong Kong in his international debut. Sho Inagaki, Sota Nakamura, Mao Hosoya and Henry Heroki Mochizuki have also scored for Japan. Taisei Miyashiro, among the leading scorers in the J1 League this season for Vissel Kobe, is also a threat.

Korea have had 42 wins, 23 draws and 16 losses against Japan but have dropped the past two matches by the identical scores of 3-0.