The Olympic team loses to South Korea 4-2 and exits the Asian Championship

The Lebanese Olympic team (under 23) lost to their South Korean counterparts 4-2 in their second match of the AFC U-23 Championship, held at Al-Shabab Club Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Lebanon started the match strongly, applying early pressure on the Korean players, which resulted in Leonardo Shahin opening the scoring in the 13th minute. However, South Korea quickly equalized after capitalizing on a corner kick due to poor defensive positioning, ending the first half 1-1. At the start of the second half, Lebanon repeated the same scenario, taking the lead for the second time in the 48th minute through Ali Al-Fadl. However, the high pressure exerted by the Korean team, coupled with Lebanon's defensive retreat, allowed South Korea to turn the game around and score three consecutive goals, ultimately winning 4-2. The Lebanese national team's lineup for the match was: goalkeeper Anthony Maassari, and players: Ali Reza Ismail (Khodr Qaddour 73'), Jad Samira, Hassan Farhat (Joseph El Hajj 79'), Mohammad Safwan, Hassan Fouani, Daniel Istambouli, Ali Al Fadl (Mahmoud Zbib 65'), Leonardo Chahine, Mohammad Sadek (Shadi Jouni 65'), and Ali Qassas (Hassan Bazzi 73'). With this second loss, our Olympic national team lost its chances of qualifying for the quarterfinals, following defeats against South Korea and Uzbekistan. They will conclude their group stage campaign against Iran next Tuesday at 1:30 PM Beirut time, at Al Shabab Club Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.