The Korean women’s soccer team was completely defeated by England, a strong team ranked 4th in the FIFA rankings, and realized the high wall of the world stage.
The women’s national team (ranked 15th), led by coach Colin Bell, lost 0-4 to England in the first leg of the 2023 Arnold Clark Cup held at Stadium MK in Milton Keynes, England on the 17th.
The Arnold Clark Cup is an international friendly competition hosted by the Football Association of England. Four countries, including England, Italy and Belgium, compete to determine the winner. Excluding Belgium, the three countries are participating in the Women’s World Cup, which will be held in Australia and New Zealand this summer, so it is a good opportunity to strengthen and gain experience.
England, which the Korean women’s national team faced on this day, is a strong team that won the 2022 Women’s European Championship (Euro) champion. They have not lost a single game in the preceding 26 games since Sarina Wichmann took over last year.
The Korean national team, whose key players, such as ace Ji So-yeon (Suwon FC), were unable to participate due to injuries, suffered a crushing defeat to England in not only physical struggle but also speed and technique. In the group stage of the World Cup, the national team had to deal with Germany, a strong European team that ranked higher than England (FIFA ranking 2nd).
On this day, in the 4-5-1 camp, Korea lowered the line further than usual, blocking England’s offensive well in the early stages of the game. However, in the 40th minute of the first half, Jang Seul-gi fouled in the penalty area and awarded a penalty kick, and Georgia Stanway shook the net.
In the 1st minute of the second half, Chloe Kelly’s shot from the left side of the penalty kick was deflected off Lee Geum-min’s foot and was sucked into the net to give Korea an additional goal. In the 5th minute of the second half, Alex Greenwood’s cross from the left was crossed by Russo, who made it 3-0. In the 33rd minute of the second half, James conceded another goal on a shot from the front of the goal area.
In addition to Ji So-yeon, Korea played a difficult game as players who had been responsible for the midfield, such as Cho So-hyun (Tottenham), Lee Young-joo (Madrid CFF), and Lee Min-ah (Hyundai Steel), were unable to play due to injuries. 먹튀검증 A quality pass was not delivered to the attacking camp, and a threatening scene could not be created.
In a pre-match interview, when asked how to prepare for the midfield vacancy, coach Bell said, “It can be an opportunity for other players,” and expected the players who were not summoned to play in this tournament. When asked what he expected from Park Eun-seon and Chun Ga-ram, who were newly selected as offensive resources this time, he foreshadowed fierce competition for starting positions, saying, “If players who were not selected this time show good performance, there is a chance.”
Coach Bell said, as he emphasized during the training camp in Ulsan, that the only way to survive is through organized defense based on strong stamina. “All world-class teams are fast and physically strong,” he said. “The national team players have to train individually as well as team training.”