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Four S. Koreans named to team of tournament at AFC Asian Cup

February 2, 2015
Cha Du-ri (Yonhap)

Cha Du-ri (Yonhap)

SEOUL (Yonhap) — Four players from the runner-up South Korea were named on Monday to the team of the tournament at the AFC Asian Cup.

Winger Son Heung-min, midfielder Ki Sung-yueng, and defenders Kwak Tae-hwi and Cha Du-ri were among the 11 players selected to the AFC Asian Cup Dream Team.

Son led South Korea with three goals, despite missing a match in group stage with the flu. Ki, the South Korean captain, made 408 passes, more than anyone in the tournament. Kwak started the tournament on the bench but worked his way into coach Uli Stielike’s lineup as South Korea marched into the final without giving up a goal.

Cha, the oldest member of the team at 34, was a force on both ends. He retired from international play after the Asian Cup.

Australia, which defeated South Korea 2-1 in Saturday’s final in Sydney, also had four players named to the All-Star squad: forward Tim Cahill, midfielder Massimo Luongo, defender Trent Sainsbury and goalkeeper Matthew Ryan.

Luongo was also named the Player of the Tournament, while Ryan was chosen as the Golden Glove winner as the top goalkeeper.

The United Arab Emirates, which finished third, had two players on the Dream Team: forward Ali Mabkhout and midfielder Omar Abdulrahman. Mabkhout led all scorers with five goals.

Defensive back Dhurgham Ismail was the only player from Iraq, which finished in fourth.