China led for 11 minutes, and Bae Jun-ho’s late header put South Korea into another Asian Games final
Eom Ji-sung set up both goals as the three-time defending champions came from behind to beat China 2-1 in Osaka.
Sep 30, 2026
China led South Korea for 11 minutes at Nagai Stadium in Osaka on Wednesday and held them level for nearly 50 more. Then Eom Ji-sung went down the left in the 82nd minute and crossed, Bae Jun-ho arrived at the back post, and his header won the Asian Games semi-final 2-1.
South Korea, champions at the last three Asian Games, play Japan or Uzbekistan for gold at Toyota Stadium in Aichi on Saturday, 3 October, at 7.30pm local time (4pm IST).
China scored first
The opening goal came from Wang Yudong on 22 minutes, finishing a neat team move with an emphatic strike. This was China’s first Asian Games semi-final since Bangkok in 1998, and they came into it unbeaten in four games.
The lead lasted until the 33rd minute. Eom swung in a corner, Lee Young-jun headed it towards goal, and China keeper Li Hao got a hand to the ball without keeping it out.
Eom made both goals
Lee Min-sung started three of his Europe-based players behind Lee Young-jun, the Grasshopper striker: Eom of Swansea City, Bae of Stoke City and Lee Hyeon-ju of Arouca. Two of them decided the game. Eom, who scored a first-half hat-trick against Qatar in the group, had no goal here but supplied both of Korea’s, and Bae ghosted in at the back post for the winner.
China had kept three clean sheets in four matches before Wednesday, and they made Korea work for this one. They were also the runners-up at the AFC U-23 Asian Cup in January. But China have still never won Asian Games football gold, and that wait goes on.
The crowd in Osaka was sparse for a semi-final. If Japan beat Uzbekistan in the other semi-final, Saturday’s final in Aichi will not have that problem.