Kim Yong-hak, the ‘Assault Captain’, saved Kim Eun-jong-ho, who was about to fall into the swamp. The goal turned the tide.
Kim Yong-hak and the South Korea U-20 national soccer team drew 2-2 with Honduras in their Group F match of the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup Argentina at the Estadio Malvinas Argentinos in Mendoza, Argentina, at 6:00 a.m. KST on June 26. South Korea scored back-to-back goals from Kim Yong-hak in the 13th minute and Park Seung-ho in the 17th minute, but were unable to hold off Honduras, who scored one goal each from David Luis in the 22nd minute and Ivan Castillo in the sixth minute. South Korea added a point to its tally with the draw to move to four points (one win, one draw), good for second place in Group F behind Gambia, which has won two straight.
It was a game that could have gone either way for South Korea. They conceded a penalty in the first half for a foul on Choi Seok-hyun inside the box, and despite having the numerical advantage after Lewis was sent off for unsportsmanlike conduct shortly afterward, they conceded a second six minutes into the second half to Castillo’s surprise mid-range strike.
It was a huge crisis, given that Honduras was defending with one man down and started the game with a time delay after being brought down in a minor collision. It was Kim Yong-hak who made the breakthrough.
Kim Yong-hak, who had been energizing the Korean attack with his trademark daring runs since the first half, rattled the net with a left-footed shot in the 13th minute of the second half when he 안전놀이터 beat a defender in a narrow space in the box after a pass from striker Lee Young-joon in a chaotic situation in front of the Honduran goal. It was a goal that showed a lot of confidence in his ability to beat the opposing defender, and it gave Korea the confidence they needed to go into the game. From there, South Korea started to go on the offensive, and four minutes later, Park Seung-ho equalized with a header off a corner kick from Lee Seung-won.
With a little more luck, Kim Yong-hak could have been the hero of the comeback. Whether it was his left-footed strike in the 34th minute in a chaotic situation in the box or the chance he gave up to Kang Sung-jin in the 45th minute on a solo counterattack, Kim Yong-hak’s sharp attacking skills shone through in each of South Korea’s scoring chances in this match. Kim Yong-hak’s fierce play against France was replicated against Honduras. He’s a striker worth keeping an eye on in the upcoming matches.