Jeonbuk lose on penalties in nail-biter Champions League semifinal

Football

Published: 26 Aug. 2022, 11:07

Jeonbuk lose on penalties in nail-biter Champions League semifinal

〈YONHAP PHOTO-4598〉 Jeonbuk Hyundai Motor's Kim Bo-kyung reacts after missing a penalty during a shootout at the end of an AFC Champions League semifinal match against Urawa Red Diamonds in Saitama, Japan on Thursday. [AFP/YONHAP]

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors lost a hard-fought AFC Champions League semifinal against Japanese club Urawa Red Diamonds on Thursday, losing their lead in the final minute of extra time and then falling apart in a penalty shootout.

Although the K League club came within minutes of taking the win at the end of the game, Urawa had the edge for most of the 120 minutes, drawing first blood early with a goal from Yusuke Matsuo in the 11th minute.

Jeonbuk pulled one back 10 minutes into the second half, when a foul on Song Min-kyu in the area gave Paik Seung-ho a crucial spot kick to tie the score at 1-1.

With no room between the two teams at 90 minutes the game moved into extra time, but not before Urawa very nearly stole the show with a shot that ended up coming off the post in injury time.

It was not until the second half of extra time that Jeonbuk finally broke through, with Han Kyo-won scoring the go-ahead goal with just four minutes left on the clock. That goal wasn’t enough, however, as Kasper Junker pulled one back for the Japanese club in the 120th minute.

The last-gasp goal tied the score at 2-2 and forced the game into a penalty shootout. Jeonbuk shot first, but Kim Bo-kyung’s effort was saved by Urawa goalkeeper Shusaku Nishikawa. Alexander Scholz scored the first penalty for Urawa, giving the club a 1-0 lead on the shootout.

Jeonbuk’s bad luck continued when Lee Seung-gi also fell afoul of Nishikawa, while Junker scored his to go up 2-0.

Park Jin-seop scored the third penalty for Jeonbuk while David Moberg Karlsson, but Kim Jin-su then hit the post with Ataru Esaka scoring to give Urawa an unassailable 3-1 lead on the penalty shootout. The J League club won the game and earn a ticket to the Champions League final.

Jeonbuk’s loss means that for the first time in three years, a Korean club will not represent East Asia in the continental tournament final. The Pohang Steelers made it to the final last year, losing to Al-Hilal, while Ulsan Hyundai beat Persepolis in the 2020 final to take the Champions League title.

Urawa were the last non-Korean team to reach the final from the East Asian contingent, losing to Al-Hilal in 2019. That year, no Korean club made it past the round of 16.

Urawa will face a club from the West Asian bracket in the final, but not until after the 2022 Qatar World Cup. The Champions League will resume with the West Asian knockout round and the final in February next year.

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]