[Olympic Soccer] North Korea Eliminated Following Japan and China... Only Korea Secures Early Quarterfinal Spot

Players from the United Arab Emirates celebrating after scoring a goal in the 2020 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Championship match against North Korea / Photo by AFC Official Website

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Seong-yeol] North Korea was defeated 0-2 by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), confirming their elimination from the Tokyo Olympic qualifiers.

As a result, among the Northeast Asian countries except South Korea, Japan, China, and North Korea all recorded two consecutive losses in the group stage, failing to advance to the quarterfinals.

On the 13th (Korean time), North Korea lost 0-2 to the UAE in the second match of Group D in the 2020 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Championship held in Buriram, Thailand.

Following a 1-2 loss to Jordan, North Korea recorded two consecutive defeats and ranked last in Group D, ending their campaign regardless of the remaining match result against Vietnam.

In the 16th minute of the first half, UAE's Al Hamadi connected a cross with a turning shot, shaking North Korea's net. Then, in the 30th minute of the first half, Al Ameri received a low pass, lifted it with his right foot to bypass a defender, and scored an additional goal with a ground shot.

Afterward, North Korea missed critical chances and showed disappointing finishing, failing to score.

With Japan from Group B being the first, followed by China from Group C and North Korea from Group D confirming their elimination from the quarterfinals, South Korea is the only Northeast Asian country to advance to the quarterfinals.

Despite Japan's elimination in the qualifiers, they will participate in the Olympic finals as the host nation of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. However, aiming for the gold medal, Japan's failure to advance from the AFC U-23 group stage has sparked rumors of the coach's dismissal.

China has failed to qualify for the Olympic finals for the third consecutive time since participating as the host nation in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. China's sports media 'Titan Zhoubao' reported, "We expected the Chinese team to compete well against the South Korean team, but ultimately they lost due to the difference in skill."

After winning against Iran following the match against China, South Korea's group stage ranking will be decided in the match against Uzbekistan on the 15th.

In the quarterfinals, they will face one of the teams from Group D: the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Jordan (both with 1 win and 1 draw), or Vietnam (2 draws).

With Japan's elimination reducing the number of Olympic final qualification spots to three, South Korea must finish within the top three to secure a place in the Tokyo Olympics.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.