'Golden Boy' Lee Kang-in scored Bentuho's equalizer on the stage of his first start at the World Cup, laying the stepping stone to advance to the round of 16 for the second time in Korean soccer history.



The Korean national soccer team, led by coach Paulo Bento, won a 2-1 come-from-behind victory over Portugal in the last 3rd match of Group H of the 2022 Qatar World Cup group stage held at the Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar on the 3rd (Korean time).



South Korea, which defeated 'powerhouse' Portugal, tied with Uruguay with 1 win, 1 draw, 1 loss, 4 points and 0 goal difference, but advanced to the round of 16 with a 4-2 lead on multiple points.



Portugal, which had already confirmed its advance to the round of 16 by winning all the way through the second game, came out with a starting lineup that changed six players compared to the match against Uruguay.



Portugal aimed for Korea's side with active overlapping of fullbacks Joao Cancelo (Manchester United) and Diogo Dalot (Manchester United).



Korea's first run also started from a hole through the side.



Dalot's cross, which beat Kim Jin-soo (Jeonbuk) from the right, led to Ricardo Horta's (Braga) opening goal.



In the center, 'superstar' Cristiano Ronaldo (invincible) created a constantly threatening scene.



If Ronaldo's concentration in front of the goal had been slightly higher, Korea could have conceded a large number of points.



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It was Lee Kang-in's 'golden left foot' that overcame the impasse.



In the 5th minute of the second half, Lee Kang-in's left corner kick hit Ronaldo's body and headed towards the goal, and Kim Young-kwon (Ulsan) stumbled and scored the equalizer.



Afterwards, Lee Kang-in continued to lead Korea's attack across the ground.



He also worked hard to join the defense, which was pointed out as a weakness.



In the first half, the veteran center back Pepe (Porto) was pressed and took possession of the ball.



In the 27th minute of the second half, I got a foul while trying to break through in a counterattack situation.



Lee Kang-in swallowed regret as his left-footed free kick missed the goal post.



Korea finally won with a dramatic winning goal by Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton) in the 46th minute of the second half.



Lee Kang-in is a player who became known as a 'soccer genius' when he appeared on the TV program 'Fly Shooting Doll' when he was young.



Lee Kang-in, who went to Spain to study abroad early and grew steadily, proved his genius by taking the lead in Korea's runner-up myth at the 2019 U-20 (Under 20) World Cup held in Poland.



Although he received great expectations, Lee Kang-in's challenge for this World Cup was not smooth.



Coach Bento called Lee Kang-in to the national team for the first time in March of last year in an evaluation match against Japan (0-3 loss), but after that, he seldom used him.



However, in the World Cup finals, Lee Kang-in was replaced in the first match against Uruguay and the second match against Ghana to attack.



Especially in the match against Ghana, Lee Kang-in helped Cho Kyu-seong (Jeonbuk)'s pursuit goal in the first minute.



Coach Bento eventually sent Lee Kang-in as a starter in the Portuguese match, which was the last chance to advance to the round of 16.



And Lee Kang-in laid a stepping stone to the round of 16.



Korea now clashes with 'world's strongest' Brazil in the round of 16.



Fans are paying attention to whether Lee Kang-in's left foot will shine against the samba corps.



(Photo = Yonhap News)