Um Ji-sung Explodes with Hat-Trick... Fresh Start with Victory Over Qatar

[Anchor]

Our men's national football team, aiming for an unprecedented fourth consecutive gold medal at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, has taken a refreshing first step. They secured a comfortable 4-1 victory against Qatar in their opening group stage match that ended a short while ago. Um Ji-sung, who joined as a wildcard, led the team to victory by scoring a hat-trick.

Reporter Ha Seong-nyong has the story.

[Reporter]

Amid a mishap where the buses carrying the South Korean and Qatari delegations headed to a baseball stadium due to a driver's mistake and arrived at the venue 30 minutes behind schedule, the national team hurriedly warmed up and took on the match against Qatar.

With European-based players Um Ji-sung, Bae Jun-ho, and Yang Hyun-jun, who competed in the North and Central American World Cup, stepping up as secondary attacking midfielders to target Qatar, Um Ji-sung—wearing the number 7 jersey symbolizing the team's ace—put on a one-man show.

In the 7th minute of the first half, when European-based defender Kim Ji-soo delivered a long pass, Um Ji-sung penetrated the space behind the defense with incredible speed and scored the opening goal with a sharp left-footed shot. Then, in the 20th minute, after intercepting an opponent's pass, he found the corner of the net with a right-footed shot to bag his second goal, celebrating joyfully with his teammates.

Um Ji-sung's dash did not stop there.

In stoppage time of the first half, he calmly shook off a defender inside the penalty box and opened the goal once more, completing a hat-trick in the first half alone.

Fueled by Um Ji-sung's performance, the national team finished the first half with a 3-0 lead and kept up their offensive pressure in the second half. In the 21st minute, forward Kim Myung-jun, who plays in Belgium, neatly finished a cross from Yang Hyun-jun to seal the match.

The national team conceded a goal late in the second half due to a shaky defense, but easily won by a 3-goal margin.

Coach Lee Min-sung's squad, which had faced criticism for sluggish performances leading up to the Asian Games, bounced back with a fiery victory in their opening match, making a strong start toward a fourth consecutive title.

Placed in Group D, which is the only group among the four groups to feature three competing nations, the national team will play their second match against Saudi Arabia on the 22nd.

(Video by: Yang Doo-won | Video Editing by: Ha Seong-won)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.