Korea Republic coach Park Younjeong says her side must beat Ecuador in their final group game to keep their hopes of reaching the Round of 16 at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup alive.
Korea Republic suffered a 3-1 defeat to Ghana on Wednesday, leaving them with just one point from their opening two Group C matches after drawing 1-1 with France.
Ghana broke the deadlock early in the second half through captain Sarah Nyarko before Ivy Osei Owusu doubled the advantage three minutes later. Ruth Amponsah added a third, while Korea Republic scored a late consolation through Beom Yeju.
Park admitted her team fell short in attack despite trying to play more aggressively as they searched for the points against Ghana.
“We needed all three points, so we tried to play a little more aggressively, but we fell short in attack,” Park said.
The Korea Republic coach knows the margin for error is now gone and believes victory over Ecuador is essential if her team are to remain in contention.
“We have no hope of progressing if we don’t get the points we need against Ecuador in our final group-stage match, so we’ll give it everything,” she added.
Park also believes the tournament has exposed areas where her young players need to improve, particularly after facing opponents from outside Asia.
“The players have clearly grown and improved over the first two matches, but playing against world-class players has also shown us where we still need to develop,” she said.
She wants her players to use the experience to improve their physical attributes, speed and decision-making.
“I hope the players can continue to improve physically, as well as in their speed and decision-making.”
Korea Republic will face Ecuador in their final group match on Saturday, knowing that a positive result is necessary to keep their knockout-stage hopes alive.
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