North Korea and defending champion China both easily advanced to the quarter-finals of the Women’s Asian Cup on Friday, joining South Korea and host Australia in the quarter-finals.
In Group B, China defeated Uzbekistan 3-0 in Sydney, while North Korea defeated Bangladesh 5-0.
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Both teams have not conceded a goal in this tournament.
Half an hour later, Shao Ziqin was dragged down in the penalty area. The Chinese team took the lead and made no mistakes in free throws.
The defending champion defeated Bangladesh 2-0 in the first round. Li Qingtong scored twice in the second half to secure qualification for the next round.
North Korea started their campaign with a 3-0 victory over Uzbekistan, and their performance against Bangladesh was even more brutal.
The North Korean team thought they had taken the lead twice in the first half, but VAR ultimately ruled that the two goals were invalid.
The pressure from the three-time Asian champions finally paid off in first-half stoppage time as Akihiro scored a hat-trick against Uzbekistan and converted a penalty.
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Two minutes later, Kim Kyung-yong scored in the seventh minute of first-half injury time to double North Korea’s lead.
As the last eight games approached, North Korea scored three more goals in the second half while Bangladesh crashed out of the tournament.
The Chinese team and the North Korean team will decide the first place in Group B in the final round of the group stage.
The South Korean team and the Australian team have entered the quarter-finals from Group A.
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