South Korea came back from one goal down to beat Australia 2-1 in the AFC Asian Cup on Friday, setting up the tournament's first semifinal match with Jordan, who downed Tajikistan 1-0 earlier.
Australia established a lead thanks to a rebound goal from Craig Goodwin before the half-time break, firing a volley in the bottom corner after a cross from Nathaniel Atkinson, as he made up for a missed shot 18 minutes into the match.
South Korea survived a scare shortly into the second half, when goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-Woo made two saves to deny Martin Boyle's attempts on goal, before Mitchell Duke's volley from the rebound went over the bar.
South Korean captain Son Heung-min was positioned further forward after head coach Jurgen Klinsmann arranged a tactical shift, and came to the rescue in the fourth minute of stoppage time when he won a penalty after being fouled in the box by Lewis Miller, who knew little he would later hand the South Korean side another game-changing opportunity.
South Korean players celebrate during the Asian Cup quarterfinal round against Australia in Al Wakrah, Qatar, Febraury 2, 2024. /CFP
Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Hwang Hee-chan fired the shot into the top corner to drag the match into extra time, during which his side achieved their revenge on Australia, who beat them in extra time during the 2015 final to lift their first Asian Cup trophy.
Miller fouled again in the 102nd minute, this time impeding Hwang. South Korea were awarded a freekick right on the edge of the box, which Son converted.
Australia suffered another blow when they were reduced to 10 men after Aiden O'Neill was sent off following a video assistant referee review for a foul on Hwang in the second half of extra time.
South Korea last won the event 64 years ago, before which they won the inaugural edition in 1956. With much hunger to reclaim the title, they've now edged closer to victory.
"Back in 2015 it was painful, but I wouldn't call it revenge. It's part of football and that result helped me mature as a player," said Son, who scored his side's lone goal in the 2015 final defeat by the same scoreline as Friday.
"Obviously it was another drama, we're extremely happy and thrilled to go through. It was a hard fight with Australia, we expected it. But to go 120 minutes again, I'm proud of this team and their spirit," said Klinsmann.
"It's quite devastating, quite emotional for the players and staff how we finished the game. We played well for the first 90 minutes till we conceded the penalty," said Australia's head coach Graham Arnold.
South Korea drew with their semifinal rivalry Jordan in the group stage 2-2, with the rematch set to take place next Tuesday.