As Kim Eun-joong’s U-20 national soccer team looks to reach the World Cup finals, Jeong Jung-yong, who coached the runners-up at the 2019 tournament in Poland four years ago, has offered a message of support, saying that the team is “capable of winning.”
“I think the quarterfinal match (against Nigeria) was a hump, but we got over it well, so I think we can go all the way to the final,” Chung said through the Gimcheon club on July 7.
The U-20 team won the quarterfinal against Nigeria 1-0 in extra time on May 5, thanks to a dramatic header by Choi Seok-hyun 먹튀검증 (Dankook University).
After reaching the quarterfinals of the U-20 World Cup for the second consecutive time, Kim Eun-ho will now look to advance to the final against European powerhouse Italy.
Chung coached South Korea to the final in Poland, the country’s best-ever performance at a FIFA-sanctioned tournament.
The team had to settle for runners-up in the final, losing 1-3 to Ukraine, but Lee Kang-in (Mallorca) was awarded the Golden Ball, the tournament’s best player.
Jung said, “Four years ago, we were only runners-up, but this time I hope we can go beyond runners-up and win the title. I vacated the championship spot four years ago so that we could win this year,” he laughed, adding, “I think we can win it.”
The semifinal between South Korea and Italy will take place at 6 a.m. ET on Sept. 9 at La Plata Stadium in Argentina.
A win over the Italians would take them to their second straight final and a first ever title. On the other side, Uruguay and Israel will battle for a spot in the final.