NK's Naegohyang beat Suwon FC Women in hyped-up football match
Naegohyang Women's FC of North Korea defeated South Korea's Suwon FC Women 2-1 on Wednesday in a highly anticipated football match between the two Koreas, booking a spot in the final of a top Asian club tournament.
Naegohyang rallied from a 1-0 deficit in the second half with goals by Choe Kum-ok and Kim Kyong-yong in the semifinals of the Asian Football Confederation Women's Champions League amid heavy downpours at Suwon Stadium in Suwon, 30 kilometers south of Seoul.
Japanese forward Haruhi Suzuki had the only goal for Suwon FC Women, whose captain Ji So-yun missed a penalty kick that would have knotted the score in the 79th minute.
In the final scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday in Suwon, Naegohyang will face Tokyo Verdy Beleza of Japan with $1 million at stake.
Tokyo defeated Melbourne City FC 3-1 in the other semifinal match earlier Wednesday.
The Suwon-Naegohyang match was played in front of a sizable crowd witnessing the first-ever match between women's football clubs of the Koreas on South Korean soil.
This was the second meeting of this tournament between the two sides.
Naegohyang had
North Korea beat South in Seoul
- Soccer Game Between North and South Korean Teams Draws Strong Emotion On and Off the Pitch The New York Times —
- North Korea's Naegohyang down Suwon to set up Tokyo Verdy final clash The Straits Times —
- N. Korea soccer team wins 1st sports match played in South in 8 years UPI —
- 1st inter-Korean women's football match in South in years kicks off Korea Times —
- In rare clash, North Korea defeats South Korea … on the soccer field Washington Post —