AL-RAYYAN, Qatar —
Jordan is in the Asian Cup final for the first time after surprising with a 2-0 victory over South Korea on Tuesday.
Yazan Al Naimat and Mousa Tamar scored in the second half at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium to eliminate one of the favorites to win the title before the tournament began.
Jordan will face the winner of Iran’s clash with defending champion Qatar this weekend. The two teams will play their semifinal on Wednesday.
Al Naimat opened the scoring. in the 53rd minute when he shot past goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo, who had stood out avoiding several shots to keep the score at zero.
Tamari made it 2-0 in the 66th with a close-range shot.
Two-time champion South Korea was trying to win its first Asian Cup title since 1960.
In the group stage, South Korea needed a goal in added time to secure a draw against Jordan and had to come back in their round of 16 and quarterfinal matches against Saudi Arabia and Australia, respectively. But in this duel it didn’t seem possible.
The closest South Korea came to scoring was Lee Jae-sung’s header that hit the post in the first half.
Jordan, playing in the semi-finals for the first time, showed no signs of being overwhelmed by the occasion. Lee Jae-sung received a pass from Hwang In-beom, but his header bounced off the post.
South Korea had trouble creating open spaces, but came close to going ahead after half an hour of play.
Jordan then had a better chance to open the scoring before halftime when Al Naimat dribbled into the box and shot from close range. Jo denied him the goal with her face.
Confused and still trying to recover, he deflected Al Rawabdeh’s rebound with his heel.
Jordan emerged in the complementary half and went ahead on the scoreboard after eight minutes and made the 42,850 fans present explode.
The cries grew louder when Jordan extended the lead 13 minutes later.