The South Korean women’s soccer team will look to redeem themselves in Hangzhou.
Head coach Colleen Bell’s women’s football team will take on Myanmar in their first Group E match of the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games (AG) at the Wenzhou Sports Center Stadium in Zhejiang Province, China, at 8:30 p.m. (ET) on Aug. 22.
It is the first match of the Belles’ quest for gold. With an objective power advantage, the odds are stacked in South Korea’s favor. Furthermore, due to the age-neutral nature of women’s soccer, South Korea traveled to Hangzhou with its full squad (22 players), excluding overseas players such as Ji So-yeon (Suwon FC) and Park Eun-sun (Seoul Metropolitan Government). They are expected to make it through the group stage.
South Korea is looking higher than ever. South Korea has had to settle for three consecutive AG bronze medals since Guangzhou 2010. In Guangzhou and then Incheon, they lost to North Korea in the quarterfinals, and in Jakarta-Palembang 2018, they were stopped by Japan in the semifinals. They were initially expected to meet the favorites in the quarterfinals of this year’s AG, but a last-minute schedule change by the organizers delayed their meeting with Japan. This is good news for South Korea, who will be hoping to win gold.
There is a reason why the Taekwondo fans heading to Hangzhou are chanting “gold”. Not only have they won bronze medals in the previous three editions, but they also tasted heartbreak on the world stage two months ago. Bell’s women’s soccer team was knocked out of the 2023 FIFA World Cup in Australia and New Zealand in July after one draw and two losses in the group stage. Although they managed to draw with Germany in their final game, the tournament was largely characterized as a failure.
Ji So-yeon, Cho So-hyun (Tottenham), and Choi Yoo-ri (Birmingham City) were dubbed the “Golden Generation,” but they didn’t live up to expectations. Unsurprisingly, interest in women’s soccer has dropped significantly. The tournament is seen as a chance to bounce back from the World Cup disappointment and get fans’ attention once again.바카라사이트
The team is ready to make Hangzhou a ‘place of honor’. Velho arrived in China two days ago after two weeks of training at the Paju National Football Center (NFC). After kicking off their AG journey against Myanmar, the team will face the Philippines on the 25th and Hong Kong on the 28th.
The AG women’s soccer tournament will feature 17 teams divided into five groups, with the top five teams from each group and the top three teams from the second group competing in a tournament to determine the winner.