JAKARTA: Indonesians celebrated on Friday after their spirited men’s team beat South Korea in the Under-23 Asian Cup quarter-finals in a dramatic penalty shootout, leaving them one step from qualifying for the Olympics for only the second time in history.

They defeated their Asian rivals 11-10 on penalties after a 2-2 draw in Doha on Thursday night.

The top three teams will qualify for this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris while the fourth place side will face an Asian-African playoff with Guinea in May.

“Praise God, semifinal! An incredible win against South Korea, the Asian Giant,” wrote Indonesian football association president Erick Thohir on Instagram.

Rafael Struick scored twice for Indonesia who were pegged back twice by a Komang Teguh own goal and a Jeong Sang-bin strike.

South Korea went down to 10 men in the 70th minute but held on for penalties.

Indonesia’s Pratama Arhan scored the decisive penalty after Lee Kang-hee’s spot-kick was saved.

South Korea’s loss leaves them without an Olympic spot for the first time since the 1980s.

Published in Dawn, April 27th, 2024