The U-23 men's football team, led by coach Lee Min-seong, will feature Lee Young-jun as the starting striker in the quarterfinals of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games against Vietnam.
South Korea will start Lee Young-jun in the forward position instead of Kim Myung-jun for the match against Vietnam, scheduled for 7:30 PM on the 25th at Mizuho Park Rugby Stadium in Nagoya, Japan.
Lee Young-jun came off the bench in the second group stage match against Saudi Arabia on the 22nd, playing for about 15 minutes.
Kim Jun-hong will guard the goal, with Bae Hyun-seo, Kim Ji-soo, Shin Min-ha, and Choi Seok-hyun forming the defense. The midfield will consist of Lee Gi-hyuk and Kang Sang-yoon, while Yang Min-hyuk, Bae Jun-ho, and Lee Hyun-joo will start in the second line.
Kim Myung-jun, Lee Seung-won, and Eom Ji-sung, who have played in both group stage matches, will be on the bench.
South Korea aims to avenge its previous loss to Vietnam, which occurred in the third-place match of the AFC U-23 Asian Cup in January, where South Korea lost in a penalty shootout and finished fourth.
By defeating Vietnam, South Korea hopes to advance to the semifinals and move closer to winning the Asian Games men's football title for the fourth consecutive time, following victories in Incheon in 2014, Jakarta-Palembang in 2018, and Hangzhou in 2023.
If South Korea wins, they will face the winner of the China-Thailand match in the semifinals on the 30th.
Coach Lee emphasized, "From the quarterfinals, it’s a knockout stage. We will play with a clear objective to achieve results from now on."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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