Kwon’s hat-trick in South Korea’s big win

Kwon Chang-hoon scored a first-half hat-trick as South Korea maintained their perfect start to the AFC U23 Championship after recording a convincing 5-0 win over Yemen at the Suhaim Bin Hamad Stadium yesterday.Kwon, who was a second-half substitute as the South Koreans kicked-off their Group C campaign with a 2-1 win over Uzbekistan on Wednesday, opened the scoring after just 14 minutes before heading home a second 17 minutes later.And after the Suwon Samsung Bluewings midfielder completed his hat-trick at the end of the opening 45 minutes, Ryu Seung-woo and Kim Seung-jun sealed the win in the closing stages as Shin Tae-yong’s side underlined their credentials by comfortably handing Yemen their second defeat of the campaign.“What the players did on the pitch was what I wanted in this competition and I congratulate them for scoring five goals,” said South Korea coach Shin.“Kwon had an injury during a match with his club and he returned last year. I wanted to check on his condition and see if he could run for 90 minutes and I talked to the player and he said he was 90% ready.  “The match tonight was his rehearsal and he showed his physical condition was ready for the rest of the competition. Kim showed good performance in the training camp we had in Korea for one month.”South Korea made a fast paced start to the contest and were rewarded after just 14 minutes as Kwon, one of three changes to the side following Wednesday’s 2-1 win over Uzbekistan, sent Yemen goalkeeper Salem Al Harsh the wrong way with a scuffed finish from inside the penalty area from Hwang Hee-chan’s forward pass following a swift build-up from Shin’s side.And with the East Asian’s fast-paced direct attacking style proving too much for Yemen, Kwon added a second in the 31st minute with a simple near-post header from Lee Seul-chan’s inviting right wing cross.Kwon then completed his hat-trick four minutes before half-time with a rising strike from inside the area following more slick build up, with Ryu providing the assist after Sim Sang-min’s throw-in down the left touchline had been helped on by Hwang.South Korea, who introduced Moon Chang-jin at half-time following his match-winning double against Uzbekistan, continued to pour forward at the start of the second half and only some desperate Yemen defending denied Hwang just before the hour mark.And South Korea added a fourth with 17 minutes remaining as Shin’s side cut through the Yemen defence and Ryu beat the offside trap on the edge of the area before firing across goalkeeper Al Harsh and into the far corner with a composed finish.And the scoring was complete four minutes later as Kim capitalised on more slick build-up play to fire past an exposed Al Harsh from inside the area before Kwon rattled the Yemen crossbar a minute later.“There is no doubt it was a very tough match and it showed a big difference between Yemen and Korea,” said Yemen coach Amin al-Sunaini. “We had a tough preparation and tough circumstances in view of the fact there is no domestic league or competitions in Yemen due to the civil war. It is a heavy defeat by five goals, but that is football.”