AFC announced that the main controller of the match was Mr. Ko Hyung-jin, a Korean. Assistants include Bang Gi-yeol (South Korea) and Alrefaei Hesham Mohammed (Saudi Arabia). Mr. Majed Mohammed Alshamrani (Saudi Arabia) takes on the position of table referee and the position of VAR referee is given to Mr. Ahmed Eisa Mohamed Darwish (UAE).
Notably, this is the second consecutive match that Korean referees have worked in a match involving U.23 Vietnam. Before that, in the final match of the group stage against U.23 Uzbekistan, the main referee – Mr. Kim Woo-sung was also Korean.
As for referee Bang Gi-yeol, he will also hold the flag for the second time in a row in the match of U.23 Vietnam.
Mr. Ko Hyung-jin is the main referee
Mr. Ko Hyung-jin is an experienced Korean referee and has been a FIFA referee since 2009. This year he is 42 years old and is also on the list of top-class referees in Asia. This “king in black” is often assigned by AFC to perform tasks in the continent’s top tournaments such as the AFC Champions League, Asian Cup and World Cup qualifiers.
In 2024, Mr. Ko Hyung-jin refereed 7 matches but also drew 23 penalty cards. At the 2024 AFC U.23 Championship, referee Ko Hyung-jin also worked two matches: officiated the match where U.23 Saudi Arabia won 4-2 against Tajikistan and refereed the match where U.23 Jordan lost 1-2. U.23 Qatar.
To Vietnamese football, Mr. Ko Hyung-jin is not a strange face. In the past, the referee born in 1982 used to officiate the first leg of the final match of the AFF Cup 2022 (now ASEAN Cup) between Vietnam and Thailand (2-2 draw). Next, he was assigned by AFC to officiate the Vietnam team’s 0-4 loss to Australia in the third qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup in Asia.
In addition, Mr. Ko Hyung-jin was also invited to Vietnam to officiate the match between Nam Dinh Club and Saigon Club in round 25 of V-League 2022.
Mr. Ko Hyung-jin is too “familiar” with Vietnamese football
The match between U.23 Vietnam and U.23 Iraq is also the final quarterfinal match of U.23 Asia. The winner of this match will face one of two teams, U.23 Japan or U.23 Qatar.
Considering the history of clashes in the Asian U.23 tournament, the “Golden Star Warriors” have an advantage when they won the quarterfinals in 2018 (a 3-3 draw in 120 minutes of play) and U.23 Vietnam won 5-3 on penalties). However, in the most recent encounter – the 2023 Doha Cup friendly tournament, U.23 Vietnam lost 0-3.
After losing to U.23 Uzbekistan, what are the weaknesses U.23 Vietnam needs to overcome?
Tags: face unfamiliar
