Hyundai and Pohang Steelers are down to the wire for the 2023 FA Cup final, with only one game left to play for the trophy.
Jeonbuk defeated Incheon United 3-1 in the quarterfinals of the 2023 Hana OneQ FA Cup at Jeonju World Cup Stadium at 7 p.m. on Jan. 1.
With the win, Jeonbuk, who won the FA Cup last year, will attempt to become back-to-back champions.
Jeonbuk took a 1-0 lead in the 22nd minute when Moon Sun-min, receiving a pass from Lee Soo-bin, rattled the net with a right-footed shot from the left side of the penalty box in front of the Incheon defense.
But Incheon was not done. Incheon, who were trying to reach the FA Cup final for the first time in eight years since 2015, equalized in the 38th minute when the speedy Gerso broke down the left flank and finished with his own left foot to make it 1-1.
After conceding the equalizer, Jeonbuk pushed forward against Incheon in the second half and eventually regained the lead 16 minutes into the second half when Park Jae-yong’s ball from the front of the penalty box was met by Baek Seung-ho with a non-stop right-footed shot that rattled the net once again to make it 2-1.
Incheon then pushed for a comeback, but in late stoppage time, Jeonbuk won a penalty kick when Lee Dong-joon was tripped by Incheon’s Mpoku, and Park Jae-yong calmly converted the spot kick to end the game with a 3-1 victory for Jeonbuk.
A half-hour later than the Jeonbuk-Incheon match, Jeju World Cup Stadium hosted Jeju United and Pohang Steelers, and after a bloody penalty shootout, Pohang punched their ticket to the final.
Jeju struck first. Jeju scored in the 42nd minute of the first half when Kim Bong-soo’s long pass from the right flank was collected by Seo Jin-soo and he fired home to make it 1-0.
Pohang, who entered the second half with the lead, evened the score at 1-1 in the 14th minute of the second half when Zeca headed in a corner kick from the right side, and the ball flowed back to Kim In-sung, who finished with a fantastic non-stop right-footed shot into the back of the net.
The game then went into a penalty shootout with Pohang, who had gained momentum, attacking on all fronts, but no goals were scored, and the nets remained unshaken in overtime.
In an unpredictable penalty shootout, Jeju’s first kicker Jeong Woon converted, while Pohang was in trouble as Zeca’s shot was saved by goalkeeper Kim Dong-jun.
However, Jeju’s second shot from Im Chae-min went over the crossbar, while Pohang’s Park Chan-yong made it 1-1 again, and the game came down to the fourth 토토 kick. Jeju’s Kim Oh-kyu failed to convert, but Pohang’s final kicker, Lee Ho-jae, scored, giving Pohang the final ticket to the FA Cup final.
Meanwhile, the FA Cup final between Jeonbuk and Pohang will be played on April 4 at 2:15 p.m. at Pohang Steelyard.