INDIA: South Korea, ranked 11 in the world, pulled off a major upset after storming into the quarterfinals of the ongoing FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup Odisha and defeating seventh-ranked Argentina on penalties.
At the end of regulation on Monday at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, the score was five goals to one for each team. They will face the Netherlands in the quarterfinals, who have won the tournament three times.
South Korea vs Argentina
Maico Casella scored in the seventh minute to give Argentina an early lead. He capitalized on the opportunity provided by poor play from Korean goalie Kim Jaehyeon. Kim tried to stop the goal with a desperate dive, but Maico lifted it over him.
Korea was awarded a penalty corner in the ninth minute but failed to convert it. After the first quarter, Argentina led the match 1-0.
Korea evened the score in the 17th minute with a goal from Kim Sunghyun, who made good use of a cross from Taeil Hwang.
Korea took the lead in the match for the first time with a penalty corner Jeong Junwoo converted in the 19th minute.
However, Argentina came back quickly from a 1-2 deficit with goals from Keenan Nicholas in the 20th minute and a penalty corner strike from Nicolas Della Torre in the 23rd minute, giving them a 3-2 lead.
Lucas Vila failed to score in the 29th minute as Argentina attempted to increase its lead. The score was 3-2 in Argentina’s favour at the end of the second quarter.
Korea equalized in the 40th minute of the third quarter thanks to a penalty corner conversion from Jonghyun Jang. However, Argentina regained control of the game in the same minute they were awarded a penalty, and Della Torre’s drag-flick did wonders for his team.
Argentina was reduced to ten men after Martin Ferreiro received a yellow card in the 41st minute. Argentina took the lead in the final quarter with a goal by Keenan in the 46th minute, in which he put a rebound back into the net. The final score was 5-3.
However, Jonghyun and Lee Nam-yong’s successful penalty conversions in the 49th and 55th minutes evened the score, resulting in a 5-5 final score.
The game proceeded into penalty shootouts to decide the victor. Korea’s goals came from Jungjun Lee, JI Woo Cheon, and Manjae Jung, while Argentina’s only goals came from Keenan and Maico.
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