S. Korea seeking 2nd straight win over Ecuador with final berth at stake

 One more win over a familiar foe in a familiar city, and South Korea will reach unfamiliar territory at the FIFA U-20 World Cup: the championship final.

South Korea will take on Ecuador in the semifinals at Lublin Stadium in Lublin, Poland, at 8:30 p.m. Tuesday (local time), or 3:30 a.m. Wednesday (Seoul time).

South Korean players celebrate their victory over Senegal in the teams’ quarterfinals match at the FIFA U-20 World Cup at Bielsko-Biala Stadium in Bielsko-Biala, Poland, on June 8, 2019. (Yonhap)

South Korea beat Ecuador 1-0 in a pre-tournament tuneup match on May 17, though it was an unofficial contest held behind closed doors. But such a recent history certainly won’t hurt, and South Korea can use all the mental edge they can get after coming off a grueling, penalty shootout win over Senegal in the quarterfinals.

South Korea won their round of 16 match in Lublin against Japan, and head coach Chung Jung-yong said he and his players still have “fond memories” of Lublin.

“I told the players earlier that we should try to conquer as many cities as we could in Poland, because the deeper we got into the tournament, the more cities we’d visit,” he said Sunday. “We’ve been here before, and we have fond memories of the place. Overall, the team atmosphere is great, and everyone is on the same page. I think we’ll end up with a good result.”

Both South Korea and Ecuador overcame a shaky start to come this far in the tournament. South Korea dropped their first Group F match to Portugal 1-0 but have since won four straight. Ecuador had a draw and a loss to start their Group B play, and squeezed into the round of 16 as one of the four best third-place teams after edging out Mexico 1-0 in the final group match.

South Korea knocked off rivals Japan 1-0 in the round of 16 and then defeated Senegal 3-2 on penalties in an insanely intense match.

Ecuador stunned Group C winners Uruguay 3-1 in the first knockout match and then took care of the United States 2-1 in the quarters.

For South Korea, it will be a test of mental fortitude as much as a physical battle. Chung had expressed concerns about his players’ fatigue even before playing Senegal. The 120 minutes of action plus the heart-stopping shootout won’t help in that regard, and the adrenalin rush from such a dramatic win can only carry players so far.

In the previous two knockout matches, Chung deployed passive, defense-oriented tactics in the first half before switching gears in the second half. That way, some key attacking players were able to conserve their energy early and make an offensive push later. Chung also brought some regular players off the bench against Senegal, and forward Cho Young-wook, a starter in the first five matches, delivered a go-ahead goal early in extra time on fresh legs as a second-half sub.

South Korea’s offense starts with midfielder Lee Kang-in, who has been given free rein to operate up front. He scored a goal and assisted on two others against Senegal, getting himself involved in all three South Korean goals before the shootout.

Lee was taken out during extra time as he dealt with bouts of muscle cramps, but the team’s youngest player at 18 should be ready for another starting duty.

With Lee being the top facilitator for South Korea, forwards Cho and Oh Se-hun are tied for the team lead with two goals apiece.

For Ecuador, Gonzalo Plata has a team-high two goals, and four players have a goal apiece.