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S. Korea held to scoreless draw by N. Korea, still wins East Asian Cup

August 9, 2015

South Korea’s Lee Jae-sung, right, gets tripped up by North Korea’s Suh Kyung-jin. (Yonhap)

WUHAN, China (Yonhap) — South Korea clinched the East Asian Cup football title Sunday, thanks to Japan.

South Korea came out on top in the four-nation competition with five points on one win and two draws in Wuhan, China. The host country had a chance to take the trophy with a win over Japan in the tournament finale, but settled for a 1-1 draw.

Earlier Sunday, South Korea was held to a scoreless draw by North Korea at Wuhan Sports Center Stadium, and had to wait for a few more hours to see if Japan could help South Korea’s cause.

With the draw, Japan finished the tournament as the only winless team. China and North Korea both had four points but China finished in second thanks to its edge in goal difference.

This was South Korea’s third East Asian Cup title, and its first since 2008.

South Korean midfielder Jang Hyun-soo was named the MVP of the tournament. He appeared in all three matches and scored his first international goal on a penalty against Japan.

Defensive back Kim Young-gwon was named the best defensive player of the competition.

Ri Myong-guk of North Korea was the top goalkeeper, while Yuki Muto finished as the leading scorer with two goals.

South Korea had an impressive 2-0 victory over China to open the event. Then South Korea outplayed its long-time rival Japan but could only muster a 1-1 draw.

Stielike’s team wasted a handful of chances against North Korea. North Korean keeper Ri Myong-guk stood tall in his net and denied South Korea a chance to clinch the tournament outright.

Though it needed a little help from Japan at the end, South Korea was a well-deserved champ.

South Korea head coach Uli Stielike had the youngest team he’d assembled since taking over the national team last fall. With the European clubs under no obligation to release South Koreans for this occasion, Stielike relied on the services of those based in South Korea, China and Japan.

Though South Korea managed just three goals in its three matches, young and energetic attackers such as Lee Jae-sung, Kim Seung-dae and Lee Jong-ho all showed flashes of brilliance. All based in the domestic K League Classic, the three are expected to get long looks from Stielike, who will be able to select from his overseas pool when South Korea plays a pair of World Cup qualifiers next month.