Um Ji-sung Explosive Hat Trick: A Fresh Start With a Victory Over Qatar

[Anchor]

The men's national football team, aiming for an unprecedented fourth consecutive gold medal at the Nagoya Asian Games, made a refreshing start by defeating Qatar 4-1 in their opening group stage match. "European-leaguer" Um Ji-sung led the victory by scoring a hat trick.

Here is reporter Ha Seong-nyong with the details.

[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 later than scheduled, the national team quickly warmed up and took on the match against Qatar.

With European-based players Um Ji-sung, Bae Jun-ho, and Yang Hyun-jun, who participated in the North and Central America 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 sliced through the space behind the defense with tremendous speed and scored the opening goal with a sharp left-footed shot. Then, in the 20th minute, after intercepting an opponent's pass, he netted a multi-goal performance by piercing the corner of the net with a right-footed shot, celebrating joyfully with his teammates.

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

During stoppage time in the first half, he calmly dribbled past one defender inside the penalty box and opened the net once more, completing a first-half hat trick.

Fueled by Um Ji-sung's performance, the national team finished the first half with a 3-0 lead and continued 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.

Although the national team conceded a goal late in the second half due to defensive wavering, they secured a comfortable victory with a three-goal margin.

The Lee Min-sung squad, which had faced criticism for sluggish performances prior to the Asian Games, rebounded with a resounding victory in their opening match, kicking off a powerful journey toward their fourth consecutive championship.

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.