Professional soccer team Ulsan HD had a close game that went to a penalty shootout at the final of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League, but could not overcome Yokohama F. Marinos (Japan).
Ulsan, led by coach Hong Myung-bo, lost 2-3 in the second leg of the 2023-2024 AFC Champions League semifinals against Yokohama held at Nissan Stadium in Yokohama, Japan at 7 p.m. on the 24th, adding up to the first leg (1-0 win) on the 17th. We couldn’t win the game at 3-3. They lost 4-5 in a penalty shootout.
Ulsan’s challenge, which was hoping to become the third Asian champion after 2012 and 2020, ends here.
One Yokohama player was sent off in the first half, and although they took the lead due to numerical superiority, it was disappointing that they could not lead to victory. Although they dominated the number of shots (40-14), they were not efficient.
Yokohama dramatically advances to the finals and competes with Al Ain (United Arab Emirates) for the championship. Yongwoo Park from Ulsan is playing for Al Ain. We were looking forward to a final match against our home team Ulsan, but it did not happen.
Al Ain advanced to the finals as the strongest team in West Asia by winning the first and second games 5-4 combined in the semifinals against Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia). The finals will be home and away on the 11th and 25th of next month.
It rained heavily throughout the game, so the game had to be played in difficult grass conditions.
Ulsan collapsed early in the game, conceding three goals due to Yokohama’s wave of attacks.
In the 13th minute of the first half, their defensive concentration wavered and they gave up the first goal to Asahi Uenaka. Nam Tae-hee (Yokohama)’s calm help stood out.
In the 21st minute, Anderson Lopez cut into Ulsan’s goal net with a quick left-footed shot from in front of the penalty box. Then, in the 30th minute, Uenaka, who scored the first goal, scored his third goal.
Ulsan quickly fell behind 0-3, and allowed a 1-3 comeback in the first and second games combined.
However, in the 35th minute of the first half, Matheus scored the first goal of the chase with a sensational header from a corner kick set piece.
Then, in the 39th minute of the first half, during Ulsan’s counterattack opportunity, Yokohama’s Takumi Kamijima committed a handball foul inside the penalty box and received a red card. It was an important moment for Ulsan to gain both a penalty kick and a numerical advantage.
In the 42nd minute of the first half, Boyanic, who took over as the kicker, successfully scored a penalty kick to trail the team 2-3. The combined score was tied 3-3.
Ulsan, which had a numerical advantage, was disappointed when Lee Dong-kyung’s shot hit the goal post in extra time in the first half.
Ulsan fell behind 2-3 in the first half. Expectations were high that the team would escape the combined score with an equalizer in the second half. But it wasn’t easy.
Ulsan’s Boyanic scored an equalizer two minutes into the second half, but it was canceled through video review (VAR). Yokohama also hit Ulsan’s net with a header in the 18th minute of the second half, but the match was canceled after being ruled offside by VAR.
The two teams, unable to score a game with a combined score of 3-3 in the first and second games for 90 minutes in the first and second halves, entered overtime. Neither team scored a goal in the 30 minutes before or after extra time, so it ended up going to a penalty shootout.
Both teams succeeded in their fourth kicker and the score was tied at 4-4. At the last kicker, our fates were different.
Ulsan had veteran Kim Min-woo as the last kicker, but he was not successful. The ball was kicked low to the right and caught by Yokohama goalkeeper William Pope.
On the other hand, Yokohama’s Eduardo split Ulsan’s goal net with a cool shot. The long game came to an end.
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Tags: Ulsan fails advance Champions League finals .. Lose Yokohama penalty shootout
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