South Korea's national soccer team suffers first three-game losing streak against Japan - local media points out growing disparity, but coach remains positive

The final match of the East Asian E-1 Football Championship was held on the 15th of this month in Yongin, near Seoul, South Korea, where the Japanese national team defeated the South Korean national team 1-0 to win their third championship in two consecutive tournaments.
This loss marks the first time in history that South Korea has suffered three straight losses to Japan, and it has come as a shock to the nation. Some South Korean media have pointed out the disparity between Japan and South Korea.
The tournament featured a round-robin format with Japan, South Korea, China and Hong Kong participating. South Korea beat China 3-0 and Hong Kong 2-1.
Korea won the final match against Japan with a score of 0-0, but Japan, who also had two wins, had a higher goal difference than Korea, so Korea had to win in order to win the tournament.
Yuki Soma sent a cross from the left wing and Germain Ryo hit it with his left foot, shaking the net and scoring the opening goal. After that, the two teams continued to battle it out, and Japan ended the game with a score of 1-0.
In the second half, South Korea launched a fierce attack, but was unable to score, and Japan won 1-0. South Korea was aiming for its sixth victory, its first in six years since the 2019 tournament, but
However, it did not come to fruition. The Korean newspaper JoongAng Ilbo reported on the match that day, in which the Korean national team suffered a painful defeat, saying, "Korea's coach Hong Myung Bo adopted a three-back defense in the match against Japan.
The game was similar, but Japan was ahead in terms of the flexibility of their build-up and their tactical perfection. Their pressing, quality of passes and success rate were also superior to South Korea's.
Korea continued to play calmly, and there was a sense of a goal in store, with Na Sang Ho firing a shot that hit the post. "But in the second half, they attacked a lot, but still barely any shots were on target.
They couldn't shoot, and their best chance was thwarted by a big save from the opposing goalkeeper, so in the end Japan escaped."
South Korea will face Japan in a friendly match in March 2021 and an E-1 match in July 2022.
In the first championship, they lost both games 0-3, and this defeat marks the first time they have lost three games in a row against Japan. A Korean media footballer commented, "This has never happened even in the days when Korean soccer was much weaker.
"It's a first in history. The first Japan-Korea match was in 1954, and Korea was not even allowed to lose two games in a row against Japan. This three-game losing streak is also a first in history, as they failed to score in three consecutive games."
In the overall head-to-head record between Japan and South Korea, South Korea leads with 42 wins, 17 losses and 23 draws, but in the last 10 matches, South Korea has 2 wins, 5 losses and 3 draws.
Following the first ever three consecutive losses to Japan, Korean media have published articles pointing out the disparity between Japan and Korea.
The Yonhap News Agency said, "It's long past time for Korea to be ahead of Japan in terms of technique, such as passing accuracy, ball touch, and kick quality." MyDaily said, "Compared to Japan, which continues to grow, Korea is
The competitiveness of the national team has declined. Japan is at a global level, not just in Asia. We must calmly accept this fact," he said. "The Korea-Japan match has special meaning in many ways.
However, it is no longer possible to expect a victory in the Korea-Japan match by emphasizing mental strength." Meanwhile, South Korea's head coach Hong Myung Bo said of the current state of the South Korean national team, "We have reached a dangerous level.
I feel that way, but I think that the players are making a lot of effort in terms of their individual skills and are growing a lot. Korean soccer needs to work harder. The immediate issue is winning or losing.
"It's not like that," he said, making a positive comment. He also emphasized Korea's superiority in the match that day. "If you compare the two teams today, our players were better. They performed better.
I think Japan was not able to make the most of their strengths. The players fought well. It's unfortunate that we didn't get a result, and I feel bad for the fans.
But the players had high expectations of me."