South Korea’s Son Heung-min set to light up Asian Cup as Qatar take centre stage again

DOHA – The Asian Cup begins on Jan 12 with defending champions Qatar the hosts, Japan favourites and Son Heung-min’s South Korea vowing to win the title for the first time in 64 years.

The 24 teams spanning Australia to Palestine will battle for regional glory over the next four weeks, culminating in the final at the 88,000-capacity Lusail Stadium on Feb 10.

The 18th edition of the Asian Cup was supposed to have been held last summer in China but was moved to 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar because of China’s Covid-19 rules.

The Middle East nation will mostly use stadiums that staged World Cup matches, a notable absentee being Stadium 974, the temporary arena made partly of shipping containers.

The Gulf state won plaudits for its organisation of the World Cup but the team flopped on the pitch, their three straight defeats the worst performance of any World Cup host.

That lingering pain will motivate them in the defence of their Asian crown, but Carlos Queiroz was fired as coach only in December, giving replacement Tintin Marquez little time to prepare.

The Spaniard, however, insisted that all is going well in the lead-up.

“I know the players, I know my mentality and I know... my idea for playing,” said Marquez, who coached Qatar club side Al-Wakrah for almost six years before taking over the national team.

Qatar picked up their first title five years ago with a surprise 3-1 victory over four-time champions Japan in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. They open their campaign against Lebanon at Lusail Stadium in the first match of the competition.

There are six groups of four, the top two from each reaching the last 16, along with the four best third-placed teams.

Japan look the team to beat and are the most successful side in Asian Cup history with four titles.

The Samurai Blue have fond memories of Qatar, having stunned Germany and Spain in the group stage of the World Cup before losing to Croatia on penalties in the last 16.

Hajime Moriyasu’s team have enjoyed a strong year since, losing only once in 12 matches and beating hosts Germany 4-1 in a friendly.

The coach named Kaoru Mitoma in his squad despite the Brighton & Hove Albion winger suffering an ankle injury and said that Japan are determined to erase the “frustration” of their 2019 final loss.

“In order to win at the Asian Cup and beat the very best teams, we have to be dogged in defence and get better at winning the ball back from them,” he added.

South Korea, Iran, Australia and Saudi Arabia – all of whom played at the 2022 World Cup and are former Asian champions – are also teams to watch.

In Tottenham Hotspur attacker Son, South Korea have the best player in Asia who is enjoying his football again under Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou.

South Korean fans were sceptical about the appointment nearly a year ago of legendary German striker Jurgen Klinsmann, given his patchy record as a coach.

But after a slow start his side have hit their stride, their last competitive match a 3-0 World Cup qualifying win in China with Son scoring twice and setting up the third.

Klinsmann believes that anything other than winning the Asian Cup for the first time since 1960 will be a failure.

“It’s 64 years – 64 years is a long time for Korea. It’s about time that we get this done,” he said.

Australia’s run to the last 16 at the 2022 World Cup was built on a tight-knit squad and the Socceroos could challenge for another title to match their 2015 triumph on home soil, where they were led by Postecoglou.

There will be extra interest in how Saudi Arabia – coached by Italian Roberto Mancini – get on following an influx of foreign stars into their domestic football.

The Palestinian team face an uphill task with their minds on the war in Gaza. This will be their third time at the Asian Cup and they are chasing a first victory after failing to win any of their six matches so far. AFP, REUTERS