"It's going to be less than usual?We're in the round of 16! Please support us a lot" A word from U-20 striker Park Soo-jung

Sep 08, 2024

'It's going to be less than usual?We're in the round of 16! Please support us a lot' A word from U-20 striker Park Soo-jung
Bogota El Techo Stadium/ 2024 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup Colombia/ U-20 Women's Team/ Group 3rd match/ Korea vs Germany/ Photo by Hong Seok-kyun
"I think Korean women's soccer is going to drop", but we've advanced to the round of 16." Please give us a lot of support."

Park Soo-jung (Ulsan University of Science), who led the U-20 Women's World Cup to the round of 16 for the first time in 10 years, expressed her passionate feelings.

The women's U-20 national team, led by head coach Park Yoon-jung, succeeded in advancing to the round of 16 by winning 1-0 thanks to Park Soo-jung's winning goal in the 22nd minute of the first half in the final match against Germany in the FIFA U-20 World Cup Group D at Metropolitano de Techo Stadium in Bogota, Colombia on the 8th (Korea time). It was an unexpected twist. After 24 countries around the world divided into six groups from four countries and played the group stage, the way the top four countries out of the first and second (12 teams) and third-place countries in each group advanced to the round of 16 tournaments, and Park Yoon-jung-ho wrote a miracle on the edge of the cliff with a winless "1 draw and 1 loss".

South Korea, which is in desperate need of three points, sought a chance by penetrating the back of the German defense from the beginning. Park Soo-jung, who received Jeon Yu-kyung's goal kick in the 22nd minute of the first half, did not miss the opportunity of 'One Shot One Kill'. He shook the net calmly and cheered. It was South Korea's first goal of the tournament and the final goal of the round of 16. Germany's wave of attacks continued, but it overcame the crisis with a solid defense of one run in the past two games and a spirit and fighting spirit that beat the U.S. 4-2 in a friendly match. He won 1-0 with eight minutes of extra time in the second half. It is the first victory of the U-20 national team against Germany.

'It's going to be less than usual?We're in the round of 16! Please support us a lot' A word from U-20 striker Park Soo-jung
출처=KFA
Park Yoon-jung lost to Nigeria 0-1 in the first game and drew 0-0 with Venezuela in the second game. He was ranked third in the group (4 points, 1 point, 1 loss, 0 goal difference) after Germany and Nigeria (6 points, 2 wins, 1 loss). Paraguay (1 win, 2 losses, 3 points), ranked third in Group C, lost to the United States 0-7, making it to the round of 16, ranking in the top 4 of the 3rd place regardless of the results of the Argentina-Costarica match in Group F. It is the first time in 10 years since the 2014 competition that the team has advanced to the round of 16. Park Yoon-jung's opponent in the round of 16 is Colombia, which ranks first in Group A with all three wins.

South Korea's women's soccer team achieved its wish to advance to the round of 16 in Colombia for the first time in 10 years since it won the 2014 Canadian tournament under the 16-nation system at the U-20 tournament. The highest record ever was in the 2010 German competition, where Ji So-yeon (Seattle Lane), who was 19 years old at the time, scored eight goals and ranked third with silver boots and silver balls.

After confirming the round of 16, Park Soo-jung smiled in an official interview with KFA, saying, `I was really happy to be able to advance to the round of 16 for now.' "We prepared a lot for the last game because we weren't in a situation where we could go up for sure in the first and second games. It was nice to be able to beat Germany." The winning goal against Germany was the result of a fresh start with the failure of the match against Venezuela. Park Soo-jung missed several decisive chances, and South Korea was unable to match Venezuela 0-0.

Park Soo-jung said "Missing a goal chance against Venezuela played a huge role in the German match"He confessed. "I missed a really good chance, and because of that, I missed a game that would bring a point, so I tried to focus more on the chance against Germany." It is highly likely that Colombia, the home team, will be the only team that needs to win. Park Soo-jung said, `If we play Colombia, there will be a lot of home spectators and it will be very noisy.'"But if we just show what we have prepared, we will be able to bring good results. I think it'll be a great experience," he said, expressing confidence. He also didn't forget his strong words to his fans. "There are thoughts that Korean women's soccer is inferior to other countries, but we advanced to the round of 16 in a good way." We will continue to show better performances in the future." "Please cheer for us a lot," he said, ending his pleasant interview going to the round of 16 with a cute word.



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